What the Heart Wants
by fairywings81
Summary: While working at a Children's Home in Port Angeles, Seth Imprints.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: Imprinted **

"Man, I don't know, Seth. It's generally not a good idea for any of us to leave the rez, you know..." Quil Ateara said now. He studied the afternoon sky. "But I can see what you mean. I guess it won't hurt. We'll find a way to get hold of you if we need to." Seth had been given a school assignment to work somewhere that would benefit the community or the surrounding area. "I would still let Sam know, either way."

"Planned on it..." Seth Clearwater never really looked forward to dealing with Sam. Even though he was technically in Jacob's pack, Sam still seemed to rule them all. Seth had already talked to Jacob. Jacob didn't seem to mind at all, as long he knew when to come. Maybe he'd just bypass Sam all together. Jacob would pass the message on. He went into his house. "See you later, Quil."

"How was school?" Sue looked up from her laundry as Seth came in. "Did you have a good day?"

"Yeah." Seth went straight to the fridge, and got himself a big glass of milk. "I'm going to be working at the children's home in Port Angeles starting tonight." His mother was better off when she knew in as little advance as possible.

"Away from the reservation? Couldn't you find something closer to home, dear?" Sue asked now. She set a newly folded pile of clothes down, and walked into the kitchen. "It would make it a bit easier..."

"Don't worry. I already talked to Jacob." Seth soothed now. "Trust me, everything is going to be fine." He finished his milk, and then settled in to concentrate on his math homework. He had promised himself that if he did this job project, he would make sure his homework was done first. It was bad enough when they all had to have a pack meeting in the middle of the afternoon while he was trying to study for an exam or otherwise. It didn't take him long to finish, however. He had done most of it in Study Hall that day in school, knowing he would only have a short time. "I'm gonna call Jacob and ask for a ride."

Sue nodded. Seth had become very independent since his change took place. It was a wonder he didn't move out on his own or at least insist. She glanced up when Leah came barging in. "Hey, hon..."

"I hate this!" Leah burst out in reply. "I can't even have a normal conversation with him anymore." She was referring to her ex-boyfriend, Sam Uley. She sorely despised the fact that he kept trying to get her to return to his pack. She and her brother were effectively Jacob's pack, as small as it was. "I don't _want _to be a part of his pack. It's really annoying to listen to him thinking about Emily all the time!"

"Then just tell him no, Sis." Seth offered sympathetically. He had his own share of problems with Sam, Quil and Embry trying to convince him to come back. "It's what I do."

"Your job should be so easy..." Leah muttered. "You weren't dating him. The only reason you left is to protect Bella."

"You're wrong. That isn't the only reason." Seth began. It was a a discussion they often had, and it normally turned into an arguement. But the younger Clearwater glanced at the clock. He needed to catch Jacob before he left to visit Renesmee Cullen. He wouldn't have minded visiting the Cullens himself. He and Emmett had become pretty good pals, though they still had their differences, because of the fact Emmett was a bloosucker. But tonight wasn't the night for it. He made a promise that he would go as soon as he had a day off. He got on the phone with Jacob, and the older of the two arranged for him to meet him at his house in five minutes. "Heading out, Mom. I'll be home later tonight."

"Be careful, Seth." Sue cautioned, as he bolted out the front door. She turned to her daughter then. "Can't you at least reconsider? I know how you feel about Sam..."

"Reconsider? After everything I've had to put up with? Jacob treats me with much more respect." Leah sniffed. "And...where did Seth go?" She had just realized her younger brother had left in an excited rush.

"He got a job in Port Angeles. It's part of a school project." Sue explained. "I'm not too thirlled about it, but he's excited, so let's just support him on it."

"Great." Leah was still in a mood. She took herself out of the house then. She didn't see any reason to bring her mother down with her. She headed into Forks. Maybe she'd find something decent to do there that would distract her.

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At the Port Angeles Children's Home, Corrinne watched as another new family was formed. Her best friend there, Casey had just been adopted. The girl with long thick black hair, and almond shapped eyes that were a light blue, an almost gray, saw them leave. Her friend turned around and waved to her in the window. She waved back half-heartedly, before she sighed. This felt like the hundredth time since she'd been there that she'd gotten left behind. She glanced up, when she heard an unfamiliar vioce in the hall. She went to investigate.

"Ahh, here comes one of our prized ones right now." Miss Martha smiled at her. "Hey, Corrinne. This is Seth Clearwater. He's going to be working with us for a while."

"Hi..." Corrinne eyed the new person calmly. He reminded her of a long ago memory that she had forgotten the details of, with his dark skin, and hair that was a thick and black as her own.

"Hey there." Seth smiled gently. She was adorable, and beautiful, even for her young age. Seth found that he couldn't look away from her. It dawned on him what was occurring. He had just imprinted. And there was nothing he could do about it. He was absolutely taken by her, and now, he wondered exactly how he'd handle that, with her being in an institution like this. He would have to work on that almost immediately. He had to drag his eyes away briefly. Ms. Martha was talking.

"You've heard of the big city programs like Big Brothers and Big Sisters?"

"Uh huh." Sam kept one eye on Corrinne. She was studying him just as curiously. "You want me to look after some of the kids like that?"

"Well..." Ms. Martha nodded to Corrinne. "We've been having a hard time placing her in proper foster care. It's been a challenge, and she's been so lonely..."

Corrinne looked away from Seth now. She sensed something weird was happening too. She was feeling very attached to him already. "I want to stay with Seth." She said suddenly.

"Well, that works otu well for both of you then, doesn't it?" Ms. Martha smiled. "We'll have a better chance to get accquainted this weekend, Seth. If you have any questions before then, my office is down the hall." She left then, leaving the girl, and her new employee to get to know each other.

They both watched her go, then Corrinne eyed Seth. "Where are you from?" She took a pace back. She liked Seth, and she felt oddly attached to him. That made her nervous, as if he had done something intentional to make her feel that way.

"La Push, the Quileute reservation." Seth explained. He imagined that Corrinne had never been exposed to his race before. Though, she herself, looked like she might've been part Native American. "How old are you, Corrinne?" He sat down in chair so that he wasn't towering over her. He was fairly tall for his age.

"Nine. How old are you?" She sat down in a chair next to him.

"Almost fifteen." Seth tried to put her at ease. She didn't look like she wanted to trust him too much, though he felt that she was already, without realizing it. "So...how long have you been here?"

"Since I was three." She spoke softly, her eyes lowered. "No one wants me."

"I bet that's not true..." Seth stood up, and held out his hand. "Can you show me around?" He wanted to get to know the one he would inevitably spend the rest of his life taking care of, and later getting together.

"Okay." Corrinne found that she didn't feel threatened by Seth. In fact, he was the first boy to show her any kindness since she'd been there. She took him out to the swing set. There were some people there, a young couple, who were talking with a little boy about leaving the place. She tried to ignore it. It always pained her when someone else was getting adopted. She led Seth to the swings, and she sat down. "Can you push me?"

"Sure thing!" Seth eyed the family as they left. He didn't envy Corrinne's situation, that was for sure. He couldn't imagine what it must be like, to watch as every child slowly leave, while you remained behind. He got behind her, and began to push her lightly. _Mom is just going to love the fact that I imprinted on my assignment. But that's the least of my worries. What if by some miracle, she becomes adopted while I'm at school? Then what would happen to me? I remember Jacob worrying about the Cullens maybe having to leave with Renesmee. He had been really upset. Would I react the same way? I can't risk finding out. I need to find a way to get her out of here. and soon! _His thoughts were interrupted by Corrinne giggling to go higher. He complied. "You like the danger of it, huh?"

"Yeah!" Corrinne was really fast liking Seth. She hoped he would come back tomorrow. This had been the most fun she'd had in months. "Will you be back tomorrow?"

"You bet." Seth smiled, and brought the swing to a stop, as a bell tolled. "I guess it's dinner time for you, right?"

"Yeah..." Corrinne was reluctant to leave Seth's side. She was afraid this was all a dream. "Promise you'll come back?"

"Cross my heart." Seth smiled, and did just that. "I'll see you tomorrow, Corrinne." He went to sign out of the office, and smiled at Ms. Martha, who came to see him out. "She's a lot of fun. I can't understand why no one wouldn't want that sweet little girl..."

"I'm not certain myself. She turned up on our porch when she was three. And we never heard from any relatives. We did as much research as we could, trying to place her with a living relative." Ms. Martha dropped her voice a notch. "There's a rumor that her father was Quileute too. There is no proof of it, except the thickness of her hair, and the shape of her eyes. Though she looks more like she'd pass for a white girl to me."

Seth frowned. He had noticed that too. Maybe that would help his case some, unless everyone hated the father. "Well. I'll be back here tomorrow. She asked for me."

"I had feeling she might..." Ms. Martha had noticed the instant bonding between the two. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Seth. I'll see you tomorrow."

Seth left after that, feeling very accomplished. Jacob was out front already, waiting for him in his Rabbit. He got in the car. He wasn't sure how to bring up the imprinting right then. He smiled at Jacob. "Thanks for the ride, man."

"No problem." Jacob grinned widely. "So...how did it go? Will you like it?"

"Oh, I'll like it alright...I don't have a choice in the matter but to go back now..." He looked at Jacob. "I imprinted."

Jacob pulled his car over to the side of the road, and looked at Seth. "On who?" They had all been wondering who would be the next to imprint. No one had guessed Seth, because he was so young. He studied Seth. The teen was okay with it, appeared, but he still looked bothered.

"On a little girl named Corrinne." Seth ran a hand through his hair. "Mom is going to have a cow. How could I have imprinted on her? She could be adopted by tomorrow, for all I know."

"Or maybe not." Jacob put in. "Adoption hours are over for now. Maybe you can talk to Sue tonight, and see what she says." He pulled back into the street. "So, imprinted, huh? How does it feel?"

"It feels like I didn't want to leave her there. She was so sad, and worried that I wouldn't come back..." Seth sighed. "I wish I could have taken her home with me..."

"Welcome to my world." Jacob replied, smirking. "I never want to leave Renesmee when I go visit." He smiled then, warmly. "I'm sure everything is going to turn out fine." He knew Sue would understand imprinting. She was after all, a part of the tribe. "You'll have to let me know how it all works out." Jacob said then.

"I'm sure you'll know soon enough." Seth replied. He leaned against the front seat of the car now, dreading the conversations that were to come when he got inside. Jacob turned the radio on, and they rode the rest of the way in silence. '


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: She's Important to Me! **

Breaking the news to his mother went exactly how Seth thought it would go. First she blinked, then sat down hard, then she just stared. It was a good thing that Leah wasn't home. He couldn't bear it if she had started on him. His mother's silence was bad enough. "Mom, please...say something."

"How could you have imprinted upon...a nine-year-old?" Sue knew by now that imprinting wasn't something that could be helped. She was just in shock. "I mean, what if something happens, and she gets adopted?" She understood immediately what Seth wanted then. "Oh no, Seth. I can barely afford to put food on the table for the three of us, let alone a fourth mouth. It's out of the question."

"Mom, please! I can't lose her now." Seth said. His eyes begged, and pleaded for her understanding. "I'll cover the cost of her living here. It doesn't even have to be permanent. It can just be until someone here can take her in. She is half-Quileute, after all." It was Seth's last resort. _I have to have her with me. I can't lose her. She's all alone, and really needs to know she's loved. I want to make her feel happy, like I did today. It would be wonderful if I could see that radiant smile of hers all the time. I'm sure it went away when I left tonight. _

"Who?" Leah was in the doorway, eyeing her mother and brother. She was not used to seeing them in the middle of an argument. That was usually her thing with her mother.

"Corrinne." Seth replied, without thinking. Leah wouldn't have known who Corrinne was. He turned his attention back to his mother. "All you have to do is is sign, Mom. I would do it myself, but I'm not old enough."

"Is he trying to talk you into a dog again?" Leah asked. "Isn't it bad enough that we turn into oversized mutts ourselves, Seth?"

"Not now, Leah." Seth replied. He didn't bother to answer her question. His mother was quiet again, as if she was suddenly thinking about his offer. "I can handle it."

"What is going on?!" Leah demanded now. She hated to be kept out of the loop when it was a family matter. "What'd you do now, Seth?"

"I imprinted, okay? Are you happy?" Seth spat. His sister was getting on his last nerve right now. He was normally more calm and mild mannered, but his Corrinne's future with him was hanging in the balance. "Please, Mom."

"Fine. I'll go down there with you tomorrow, and we'll see what has to be done. Since she's not on the Reservation herself, it may take some doing, but I'm sure we'll work it out." Sue smiled when her tall son almost toppled her, thanking her with hugs. "Now Seth, taking care of a child is a big responsibility..trust someone who knows."

"A child?! What child?!" Leah asked now. She didn't want to be hearing what she thought she was hearing. "Seth, tell me you didn't imprint on someone down at the home..."

"It's not as if I can help it!" Seth said now._ Man, she has a way of making this whole thing sound so dirty. I'm not a pedophile! There's nothing romantic about this at all! _

Leah sighed. She knew he was right. Well. That was one more person that had imprinted before her. She wondered if her lingering feelings for Sam had anything to do with the fact that she had not imprinted yet. She shook her head. "Is there anything I can do to help?" She figured her brother would need help, even if he was good with Renesmee Cullen.

"Yeah..." Seth wasn't sure how, but he was glad to see that Leah was taking an interest in what would be his whole world now. "Maybe you can help me find a place for her to sleep..."

"That's an easy one. She can share my room." Leah smiled at his surprised expression. "Well, we most certainly can't put her on the couch."

"Or I can take the couch, and she can have my bed." Seth thought aloud. "That would be most practical. "It's not as if I sleep a lot these days anyway...uh oh." He'd just thought of something. "Mom, how do we explain...the phasing thing?"

"I wouldn't worry about it right away." Sue advised. "I can talk to Billy about it later, and see what he thinks." It had dawned on her as well that Corrinne though half-Quileute, probably hadn't been raised on the tales of the tribe, and would have no idea what phasing was, and it would probably frighten her away. "If you get called away, keep it as simple as possible so she'll understand."

"That's a good idea." Seth was relieved that his family wasn't going to fight him on this anymore. If everything went well, Seth would have a new responsibilitiy to look was nervous, but he was more excited than anything else. He was smiling from ear to ear when he went into the kitchen to find himself a turkey leg. He was sure there was at least one more.

"Seth, dear, don't forget that there is also the bonfire tomorrow night..." Sue reminded him. It would be the perfect opportunity to introduce Corrinne to the rest of the community.

"Oh right." Seth replied around a mouthful of turkey. "Corrinne is going to love it!" He glanced to Leah. Even without being in his wolf form, he could tell what she was feeling. "Hey, sis..."

"What?" Leah looked over at him. "I wasn't going to be nasty..."

"I know. I just wanted to tell you...things are going to be fine. You'll get your chance." He did feel bad that Leah had not found her intended as of yet. "I wish I could help..."

"It's fine..." Leah was taken aback by the fact that Seth knew her feelings so well. Maybe he was growing up. She smiled at him. "You're going to be good to her, Seth. You have a good heart. She's very lucky to have you."

"Thanks, Leah. That means a lot, coming from you." Seth picked up his backpack, and went into his room. He still had just a little bit of homework left to do, before he could pretend to go to bed. He never slept much anymore, since he'd begun phasing. Being a shapeshifter, as they were technically called, gave him extra stamina to run on minimal sleep. It was a good thing, because they did a lot of night runs. He was thankful that Jacob had not called for a night run that night, though. He had too much planning and thinking to do.

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It was almost impossible for the youngest Clearwater to think during school the next day. He managed though. At lunch, he met up with Jacob on the lawn. His reluctant pack leader was waiting to hear how the revelation had gone the night before. "So?"

"It was rough at first, but Mom's going to go down there with me after school to talk to someone about bringing Corrinne home." Seth was grinning like crazy. "The catch is, I have to be responsible for her."

"That's how it is sometimes." Jacob thought about Quil, and the amount of time his friend spent with Claire. "If you want her to bond with you..."

"I know. I'm not complaining. You should've seen her yesterday, Jake. Two people were adopted while I was there. She got so sad, and frustrated. Though she calmed down when I was there. It pains me to see any children go through that, but Corrinne...it seemed much worse."

"Of course it did. That's what it means, to imprint. Anything you'd normally feel for someone is doubled and tripled." Jacob assured him. "You're doing a good thing, Seth, offering to take her in."

"I wouldn't have had it any other way. And get this: Even Leah wants to help." Seth was still in shock over his sister's gesture of kindness.

"Of course. Anytime one of us imprints, the whole pack backs them up in protecting what we love. It's the same reason you and Leah backed me up when Bella and Nessie were in trouble." He smiled. Seth seemed to generally be excited about the prospect of having someone to call his own. "Just remember, if she wasnt' raised on the Quileute legends, she may not know anything about imprinting. It might just be best to let her come to her own conclusions for the time being."

"Yeah. I talked to Leah about that too, last night. We've decided not to tell her anytihng for the time being. It's going to be stressful enough on her, adjusting to being in a real home." Seth was naturally concerned about the well being of Corrinne. "I can't wait for you to meet her, Jacob. She's the most precious thing in the world."

Jacob just chuckled. He knew precisely how Seth felt. It was the same way he felt about Renesmee. "I'm sure we'll get along just fine." Jacob nodded. He finished his roast beef sandwich and smiled. "Well, I'd better get ready for my next class. You take care of yourself, and I'll see you around later." He left the lawn, smiling. He hadn't seen Seth so over excited in many months. It was almost as if the last big confrontation with the Volturi had been the biggest thing to happen to him, and everything else now felt dull. Jacob could definitely relate to that.

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Corrinne all but barrelled into Seth's arms the minute she saw her new friend walk into the Home office. "Seth! You really did come back!"

"I promised I would, didn't I?" Seth grinned, picking her up. He turned to face his mom and sister. "Mom, Leah, this is Corrinne."

"It's nice to met you, Corrinne. I'm Sue, and this is my daughter, Leah." She went to talk to Ms. Martha casually, to find out what they would need to do, to take Corrinne into their custody. Leah followed.

"Corrinne, I have a surprise for you." Seth said now, as he set her on her feet. He took her by the hand, and led her to one of the meeting rooms. "My mom is here so we can take you home." He watched as her eyes grew really round, and then he laughed softly as she hugged him even tighter than before. He hugged her back, just as tightly, but carefully. "I didn't want to have to see you go through the sadness I saw yesterday. Your smile is too pretty for that."

"Seth, do you really think your mom is okay with that?" Corrinne was worried now. "I mean, what if it doesnt' work out? I'll just end up back here."

"Never. I'd never make it so that you had to be in here agian." Seth told her. He stroked her her soft hair, and gave her a comforting grin. "My friends are so so excited to meet you." His eared pricked up, hearing his mother thanking Ms. Martha. "Looks like everything is in place. " He walked with Corrinne back to the main office.

Sue knelt to Corrinne's level. "Have Seth go with you, and bring me the suitcase you were given, sweetie. You're coming home with us." She smiled, as the child that her son would spend the rest of his life with skipped down the hall, excitedly pulling Seth along. She turned to Leah. "It seems strange, thinking of your brother as a caregiver already..."

"It's going to be interesting, that's for sure..." Leah remarked. "But he was right. She absolutely adores him already." Leah couldn't help but feel a little envious of the girl. She had someone set for life now. When would it be her turn to find the one that would care for her?

Corrinne came back with Seth, carrying a paper suitcase. She held it out when Sue reached for it. "There's not much..." She looked up at Seth, sorry.

"Don't wory about that." Seth told her. He was sure that once the rest of the reservation heard tale of her, there would be donations from everyone. Corrinne wouldn't have anything to worry about anymore. He would make sure of it. He turned to Ms. Martha. "Is it alright if I come back tomorrow and work an extra few hours to make up for leaving early?" He needed the money now, more than ever.

"Of course!" Ms. Martha smiled gently, and then looked at Corrinne. "You enjoy your new family, Corrinne."

"With Seth being a part of it, how could I not?" She smiled gently, clinging tightly to Seth's hand. "Thank you for taking care of me."

"It was my pleasure, COrrinne." The Clearwaters took their new charge out of the home then, and Ms. Martha watched, as Seth helped her into their car. "I wish you all the best, little one." This she said to herself, as she turned, and went back into her office.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: New Life, New Questions**

Corrinne was a little taken aback when they rode into the reservation. It wasn't what she was expecting at all. She looked at Seth, who was grinning widely. "Is this where we live?"

"Yep." Seth smiled, and when Sue parked their car, he helped Corrinne out. "It's really not as intimidating as it seems, once you get to it." He took her suitcase from her. He led her up to their house. "Now, we're not incredibly wealthy or anything, but, we do the best we can." He opened the door. "Welcome home, Corrinne." Seth watched her expression, grinning himself. "You'll be sleeping in my room, and I'll have the couch. But we can put your clothes in my sister Leah's room for the time being." He took a step back. He would let Corrinne get herself oriented in the place, and the boy didn't want to crowd her.

Leah and Sue came in after they had a couple of minutes alone in the house. Sue was careful not to smother the girl, but she couldn't help but ask if she needed anything. Leah hung back, monitoring the situation from a distance. At length, she went over to Seth. She had to deliver a message that she was sure Seth would not want. "Um...Seth? Jacob says we have to run perimeter tonight. Qul and Sam saw...soemthing near the boundary line that shouldn't have been there."

"Tonight? But Corrinne just got here..." Seth watched Sue pour his new responsibility a cup of milk. "Mom, can you...?"

"Yeah." Sue sighed. This was what she had been afraid of. "But you really should talk to Jacob about this..." She knew Jacob would understand. The boy spent nearly ever day himself with his own imprinted one, and he had to make allowances for Seth and his. She looked down at Corrinne. "Seth has to go out for a while after dinner. But he won't be gone long."

Corrinne merely nodded. Seth had already done more for her than she had any right to ask. If he had something else he needed to do, who was she to complain? She wasn't that self-centered. She wandered out the front door, wanting to get a better handle on her surroundings. She didn't hear Seth follow her out.

"It's pretty nice, huh? It's a great community..." Seth put a hand on her shoulder. "You're going to love it here."

"Anywhere is better than there..." Corrinne looked up at Seth. "You saved me, Seth. Just like a prince." She hugged him around the waist. "I didn't believe in princes and fairytales till you came."

Seth smiled. "Aww, anytime, Corrinne." He hugged her back closely. He straightened up as Jacob walked into the yard. "Hey, Jake."

"What's up, Seth?" Jacob was eyeing the girl he knew must be Corrinne. "Hey there, Corrinne. Seth's been talking about you since last night. He was insistent on you coming home with him."

"Ms. Martha got an earful of Seth's name too." Corrinne grinned. "He's the best thing that ever happened to me." She was staying closer to Seth, shy of the newcomer. "Who's he, Seth?"

"Aww, you don't have to be afraid of him. This is Jacob Black. He's a very close friend of the family's." Seth picked her up. "Jacob, this is Corrinne." He held her close to him.

"It's nice to formally meet you, Corrinne. You're completely safe here with Seth. He's a good guy, and very dependable." Jacob gave Seth a meaningful glance, and the younger of the two nodded. "Well, I better get moving. Renesmee is expecting me. You two have fun."

"We will." Seth turned and carried Corrinne back into the house. "Well, I have homework to do, so..." He frowned. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do to keep Corrinne occupied while he did his homework. He set her down. "Erm..."

Corrinne eyed the TV. "Can I watch TV while you work on it?" She didn't get to watch much TV under Ms. Martha's care. She had only heard stories about it from the former orphans that came to visit after they were adopted.

"Oh, sure." He smiled, and showed her how to work it. "If you need anything just call me." He purposely decided to do his homework at the dining room table so that he could keep an eye on him. He looked at Leah. He knew he only had a limited amount of time before they had to go and meet Jake.

"So...Corrinne...what do you think of this place?" Leah asked clamly. She sat down near the girl.

"It's different..." Corrinne hadn't really thought about what it would be like, moving into a real home, and she definitely hadn't expected what she'd come into. The feeling of community was evident already to her. She looked up at Leah. For some reason, Seth's sister didn't appear to be one hundred percent satisfied with her being there. She shrugged it off. She was probably just being paranoid. "A good different..."

Leah nodded. "You do know you're part...Quileute, right?" She wondered if Corrinne's Ms. Martha had ever told the child about herself.

Seth's head snapped up. "Not now, Leah." He got up, and pulled Corrinne to her feet. "Do you like to draw?" He wanted to distract her from Leah's question. There would be time enough to talk to her about being half Native American. He didn't think her first night there should be anymore stressful than it already was.

"Yeah. I drew this for you!" Corrinne went to the paper suitcase now. The forlon luggage was sitting on the arm of one of the few chairs that crowded the living room. She pulled out the drawing, and took it over to Seth. "I saw this in my dream last night."

Seth took the picture in his hands, and refrained from taking in a sharp breath. The picture was obviously a wolf. A large one at that. He imagined Sam's wolf form immediately. "Have you ever seen this wolf in real life, Corrinne?"

"Mmm..." Corrinne looked at her feet. She didn't want to tell him. It felt like maybe it should be kept a secret. The wolf would've wanted it that way. She remembered the one time, before she'd been sent away, that she'd run into a wolf similar to it. "I never have." She shook her head. She would keep the wolf's secret.

Seth frowned inwardly. He was sure the girl was lying, but he wouldn't press her about it. He glanced toward the window. It was starting to get dark. He looked at Leah. "I'm going to run her to the Blacks' place. I'll be back." He smiled at Corrinne. "Mom's a bit busy tonight, so we'll have you stay with Billy Black. That's Jacob's dad. He's a nice guy too. You'l learn to love everyone here. But don't get on Sam's bad side. I'll introduce you to him later." As he talked, Seth led her out of the house again, and towards Jacob's house. His friend would be elsewhere, and waiting for him. He knew Jacob would give them time to get there, with Corrinne as a new responsibility.

"Oh, Seth. I knew you'd find me here." His mother greeted him from the front porch of the Blacks' residence. She held a hand out to take Corrinne's. "Jacob's..." She nodded in the general direction of the woods. "Where's Leah?"

"Oh I was going to go back and get her. Can you call her for me?" Seth blinked, when she felt Corrinne's grip on his hand tighten. He looked down at her. He could tell immediately that she was nervous. He knelt to her level. "Listen, Corrinne...I have to do this...thing tonight, but I promise, tomorrow, after I get home from school, you and I will explore this whole place together. Just the two of us." He would talk to Jacob about this trailing thing too. He didn't mind doing it, but now he had a new responsibility. He got to his feet. "I need you to go with mom for now, though, okay?" He looked at his mom. "She's sleeping in my room tonight."

"Alright." Sue smiled, and took Corrinne's hand. "We'll be just fine, won't we, Corrinne?"

"Yeah, I guess so." She watched Seth disappear into the woods. _What could he possibly be doing in the woods? Why couldn't I go with him? He promised we'd do everything together if he could help it..._That was the first time Corrinne felt suspicous of her best friend, and it wasn't a feeling she liked. It made her wonder if he was up to something bad.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: Meeting Sam**

When Seth got home that night, it was well after midnight. He was thankful that becoming a shape shifter had afforded him time to rejuvenate without too much sleep being needed. His mother was sleeping in her room, and he heard Corrinne snoring softly in his room. He turned to Leah, and whispered, "I"m just going to go check on her, and I'll come right back out."

His older sister nodded. "Right. Just don't wake her up." Leah went and got some water for the two of them, listening out for their mother. She was exhausted, and hungry at the same time. She was reminded of the conversation that had taken place that night between the three of them. Seth had requested a little while off from patrolling due to having to keep an eye on Corrinne. Jacob thought that was a reasonable request, and so had granted it. Then they had discussed what would happen if Corrinne were to find out about them. Jacob's suggestion had been simple enough. Just tell her the truth of the matter. Corrinne seemed to really like Seth anyway, so it was probable that she would keep the secret to herself. Not everyone on the reservation knew about them anyway. She shrugged. This wasn't really her problem. Seth was the one who imprinted. She was just biding her time until she did as well.

Seth poked his head into his room, and then carefully went over to the bed. Corrinne wasn't sleeping soundly. She was having a dream. He stayed back a bit, and watched. He heard her whimper a little, before she tossed to her other side. This went on for a few long moments, before she finally calmed down. Seth went over, and put a hand on her forehead. It was damp with sweat. She had been having a nightmare, not a normal dream. He pulled back sharply, when she stirred.

"S-Seth..." Corrinne broke into tears then, and she leaped into her best friend's arms. "I thought it was a dream. I thought you were gone forever...."

Seth was stunned. For a few seconds, he just held her, unsure of what to say. He had told her he would be back, hadn't he? He finally sat on the edge of the bed with her in his lap. "Corrinne, I'd never leave you if I didn't have to...." He let her bury her face in his chest, and held her closer to him. "What did you dream?"

Corrinne sniffled, wiping her eyes, as she looked up at her best friend. "You were devoured whole. By a big wolf. Like the one in my picture." She truly looked frightened, as if this could actually happen.

"Oh?" Seth smiled gently then. "Not even a giant wolf would be able to keep me away from you, Corrie." He had thought of the nickname while they had been doing their run. He held her even closer. She didn't look convinced. "Did this wolf ... have a name?"

"I can't tell you...." She whispered softly. "I made a promise." She was remembering in more detail, about the wolf from her picture. He had been big, and black. His eyes still bored into her mind every so often.

Seth frowned. She had just admitted to having met the wolf from her drawing. He wondered if it was one of the guys in Sam's pack. Or maybe Sam himself. That's what made his decision about what to do the next day with his charge. "Hey, Corrie...do you want to meet some of the others around here tomorrow?"

"Really?" Corrinne was feeling sleepy again. She was resting against Seth's chest lightly. She yawned. "Only if you're coming with me, Seth..."

Seth smiled. "Yeah, of course. Tomorrow's Saturday. So I don't have school, and I finished my homework early too." He laid her back down in the bed, and tucked her in. "I'll sit by your bed if you want...."

"Thanks, Seth..." Corrinne held out her hand, and Seth took it, and held on to it until she began to fall asleep. "You're the best..." She mumbled as she finally fell into a deep sleep.

Seth let go of her hand gently, and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. "Leah..?" His sister was sitting on the couch. He went to join her. "She was having a nightmare about me being eaten by a wolf." He smiled at the irony of it, and so did Leah. "I think she's met one of us before..."

"How is that possible? She's been in the foster home since she was three, and Sam hasn't been a wolf that long."

"Sam has been a wolf a lot longer than all of us." Seth countered. "That's besides the point. She knows something." His voice was low. "And wolves frighten her, it seems...." The younger Clearwater frowned. That could prove to be a problem if something came up, and the pack needed to rescue her. He hoped that would never happen, but Seth never knew anymore.

"You're over thinking this. She drew a picture, and had a nightmare. It doesn't mean anything. She's just a child." Leah consoled. "It's nothing to really get worked up over." Though Leah had to admit she was beginning to think Corrinne did know something. And it sounded to her like Sam was the wolf that Corrinne had met. Well, if that was the case, it was no wonder she afraid of them. Sam had that build. "You should get to sleep." Leah stood up, and went into her room. "Goodnight, Seth."

"Night." Seth laid down on the couch, but he knew he probably wouldn't sleep well. One ear would always be turned towards his door, listening in case Corrinne needed him.

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Seth took Corrinne out shortly after breakfast. He didn't have any order in mind, but they came across Quil first. He was glad, because he was still suspecting that Corrinne had met Sam before, and he wasn't sure what would happen if they met again, now that she was older. "Hey, Quil." He smiled, as Corrinne moved closer to him, as she had one upon meeting Jacob for the first time.

"So it is true..." Quil had Claire with him. He studied Corrinne, smiling. "I thought I was hearing things when I overheard Jacob talking to his dad about her." He knelt to her level, still holding Claire in one arm. "Hey, Corrinne. Welcome. I'm Quil, and this is Claire." In all honesty, Quil had no choice but to overhear anything last night during the run with Jake. She was all Seth had been thinking about.

"It's nice to meet you." Corrinne spoke softly, yet clearly. Her grip on Seth's hand tightened suddenly, though, as a tall boy that was about eighteen came to a stop next to Quil. She realized instantly she'd seen those eyes before. Only once. She buried her face in Seth's pant leg.

"And this is Sam." Quil introduced the newcomer before Seth could. He was puzzled by Corrinne's reaction. "He's really not as intimidating as he looks."

"It's alright." Sam said, his voice quiet. He recognized her too, though she was a lot taller than before. He looked at Seth. "Is she your intended?" He asked very quietly. He was sure Seth had not explained imprinting to the girl yet.

"Yep." Seth picked Corrinne up. His suspicions were growing, and he wanted very much to ask Sam about everything, but he didn't dare. "Corrinne, it's okay. Sam's not going to hurt you. No one here is going to ever hurt you." He spoke firmly, trying to reassure her. He didn't like to see her so distressed. "I don't understand..."

"Corrinne." Sam came over, and looked her in the eye. "It's okay. I'm not mad." He smiled at her then, and she smiled back at him. "That's right. You're forgiven."

"What..just happened?" Seth demanded. He was really distressed that he didn't know how his charge was feeling, or how Sam knew how to calm her down. Corrinne was just calmly sitting in his arms now.

"Come to Emily's with me, and I'll explain everything." Sam offered. "I know we're not really in the same pack anymore, but..." He nodded to Corrinne. "There are some things you should know about her." Sam led the way to Emily's, not leaving Seth a choice but to follow.

"Are you mad at me, Seth...?" Corrinne asked, her face buried in his shoulder.

"Nope. Just curious is all. Was Sam the wolf you saw?"

"I ... I think so..." Even Corrinne seemed a bit spooked at the realization. "But, how can that be...?" She hadn't meant to ask it out loud, it had slipped.

"Long story short, it's in our blood." Sam replied from ahead of him. He entered the house. "Emily, we have company."

"Oh?" Emily came out, and blinked. "Seth, it's been ages. How are you? And oh! Who is this adorable little girl?!"

"She's my everything." Seth replied simply, as he set Corrinne down. "Corrie, this is Emily, Sam's fiancé." He watched as Corrinne nodded in greeting. "Sam, you said you had something to share with me?"

"Yeah." Sam sat down. "What do you know about Corrinne so far?" He watched Emily show Corrinne what was cooking on the stove.

"She half-Quileute..." Seth shrugged. "I hadn't planned on perusing that any further. Should I?"

"Her father produced more than one child." Sam replied quietly. He stood up then. "Come on. Let's go talk about this away from young ears." He saw Seth hesitate. "Don't worry. She'll be fine." He smiled. It was great to see some of the younger ones growing up and finding their intended's as well. He walked out into the living room, and sat down in a recliner. He gestured to the couch when Seth entered. "She's a lot like Embry. No one really knows who her real mother was. All we do know is that she didn't live on the reservation. Corrinne lived on the Reservation until she was three, and then she went to live with her mother. How she ended up in a foster home, I'm not sure."

Seth nodded, listening. Sam did know a lot of things that went on the reservation that he didn't. He was the right person to talk to, even if he was not in his pack. "What about you, Sam? How does she know...?"

"That's another story." Sam sighed. "The day her mother was coming to the Rez to pick her up and take custody of her, Corrinne had gone on a nature walk with some older girls. They weren't very nice. They got her lost on purpose and then came back, and told us that she'd run off. Embry, Quil and I then began a fast search for her. I'm the one that found her." Sam sighed again. "She was very afraid of me. I guess I'm a bit intimidating in my wolf form, so I phased back to my human form. I wasn't thinking about her maybe remembering that. I just wanted to get her out of the rain. I carried her back to the Rez, and before I took her to her mother, I sat her down, and told her not to say anything about what she saw. I didn't figure on her keeping the secret, since she was so little." He smiled now. "I guess I really should stop underestimating children.."

"What do we tell her, Sam? She's bound to have questions..." Seth asked now. He was floored by the things he'd found out from his former pack leader. This visit had proven to be well worth it.

"Tell her nothing. She's a child. If you like,I can talk to her myself." He wondered if Seth had said anything about his own transformation. "Does she know ... about you?"

"No. Jacob is giving me some time off from doing runs until Corrie's more adjusted." He looked away. The subject of the divided packs was still sore for all involved. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it." Sam got up then. "She's beautiful, Seth." He was watching as Emily instructed Corrinne on how to properly cut an apple peel. "I know you're going to take care of her."

"Of course." Seth nodded. "Today, I'm introducing her to some of the people around the Reservation. She doesn't seem to remember the rez very well."

"Well, she wouldn't. She was three." Sam smiled now. "Look. I know we're not pack mates anymore, but if you ever need any help don't be afraid to come ask, okay?"

Seth nodded, finding Sam's offer a bit out of character. However, who was he to deny an offer to help if it was given? Seth was still new to this whole thing, and he would need all the help he could get. He wandered into the kitchen then. "Whatcha doing, Corrinne?"

"Emily's helping me peel an apple. Do you want some?" She held out a slice to her friend before he had a chance to reply.

Seth took it, and ate it, smiling at Corrinne. "What do you think of Emily, Corrie?"

"I like her a lot." She grinned when Emily returned her sentiment with a light hug. "Where are we going next?" She had her apple slices in a baggie now.

"Hmm. How about if I take you over to see Jake? We didn't get to spend much time with him last night." _Well, I sure did, but Corrinne should get to know my pack leader, in case of emergencies. _

"Okay, but can I talk to Sam first?" She was eyeing the tall boy warily. She was nervous. She had seen him, and his wolf counterpart many times in her dreams, including the one last night. She had not missed the intense energy that passed through Sam and Seth when they'd met on the street just blocks away. Sam held out a hand to take hers, and they walked outside a bit.

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"I'm very impressed that you didn't blow my secret." Sam said now. His voice was calm, authoritative.

"I couldn't...." She said softly, her eyes wide. "You saved my life. I owed you." She looked at the gravel now. "I dreamed about you every night...after she was gone. I kept hoping the black wolf would come and rescue me again. Then, the night I met Seth, I dreamed of a sandy colored one instead ... I liked him a lot. He told me not to worry anymore."

Sam knelt to her level, and looked her in the eyes. "What happened to your mother, Corrie?" He didn't address her other remarks. He wasn't sure he could, without giving anything away about Seth as well. Sam was not really too accustomed to dealing with children. He didn't know how Quil and Seth managed it. But he truly felt sorry for Corrinne. The past this child had already was pretty messed up and sketchy. He made a note to have Seth introduce her to Embry. They would be perfect friends.

"She was killed in an accident, on the way home that day." Corrinne could just barely remember the iron jaws that had pried her out of the car. Her mother had died on impact of the collision. Ms. Martha told her when she was older. "Ms. Martha says they tried to get Daddy to take me back, but..." she looked away.

"He wasn't here." Sam replied soothingly. "Corrie, he left the reservation shortly after you did. No one knows where he went." He pulled her close to him in a hug. "But you have Seth now. Seth will always take good care of you." He smiled gently. "Come on. Let's go back to him. He might think I walked off with you." He took her by the hand, and started to lead her back inside.

"Wait, Sam...." She tugged on his hand slightly. When he stopped, she looked up at him. "How did you ... I mean, why can you...?"

Sam took her into her arms. "That is a question I'm really not supposed to answer, however, being as you're a part of the tribe by blood, maybe it would benefit you to come to the bonfire tonight." He carried her back inside. Seth and Emily were sitting at the kitchen table, trading stories about various things. "Okay, Seth. She's all yours." Sam set her down, and watched as Corrinne immediately climbed into Seth's lap. She was already very attached to him. He had to smile. "You're a very lucky girl, Corrie. Seth here is very compassionate and protective of what he holds dear."

"That's what Jake said too." Corrinne offered in agreement. She felt Seth tense again, and she blinked. What was wrong with mentioning Jake? Hadn't he said the night before that Jacob was a close family friend? She didn't get a chance to ask him. Seth stood up, and took her by the hand.

"Thank you very much for you hospitality, Sam and Emily."

"You're very welcome. You bring her to visit anytime you want." Emily replied. "It was very good to meet you, Corrinne."

"You too, Emily." Corrinne turned to Sam now. She was going to sleep better at night, knowing her guardian wolf was only blocks away from the house she slept in. "I want to come tonight."

"Come where?" Seth asked now. He gave Sam a questioning look. "The bonfire, right?" Seth remembered hearing second hand that the bonfire that had been rained out the night before had been rescheduled for that night.

"Yeah." Sam nodded. "I thought it would be...a good learning experience for her, if you know what I mean." His voice held a meaningful tone. "She is one of us, after all."

"Well, I guess we're going then." Seth wouldn't deny her anything she wanted within reason. "Alright, let's go see who else we can impose upon." He was smiling though. It was a joke. He was sure by now everyone who knew about the shape shifters knew he'd imprinted, and were anxious to meet her. "See ya, Sam." Somehow, he felt as if he and Sam had come to some kind of mutual truce that day because of Corrinne. He guessed it wouldn't hurt. Besides, Corrie sure seemed to have some kind of ties to Sam as well. He didn't understand it, but he supposed Corrinne or Sam would explain when they were ready. For now, his goal was to make sure that she remained safe and happy.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five: Bonfire**

Corrinne was watching everything that was happening with wide, curious eyes. They were at the bonfire site. Seth took her to sit with his sister, his mother, and the Blacks, who aside from Jacob's grandfather, were seated next to them. She sat down right next to Leah, who smiled at her. "Is it going to be big?"

"Oh yeah." Leah smiled at her excitement. "Did you have a good time with Seth today?" Okay, so she couldn't completely ignore the girl. It wasn't her fault she'd been imprinted upon. Besides, she was still just a child.

"Yeah!" And she had. Corrinne eventually had gotten over her timidness after the meeting at Sam's house, and had eagerly met every one of Seth's friends. They had all treated her with a respect and kindness that she had never known before. The one she'd had the most fun with was Embry, who, along with Seth, had taken her to the First Beach. She had loved that. Corrinne felt by the end of the day that there must be something special about her being with Seth, but she didn't understand it. All she knew is that she never wanted to leave Seth's side for as long as she lived.

Leah watched Corrinne's expressions as she told her all about her day. "Wow. You're one lucky girl. The guys really love you." She grinned when Corrinne wrinkled her nose. "Oh come on. They do."

"Yeah, but she's my special princess." Seth said now, coming to sit down. He put Corrinne in his lap, grinning. "You did great today, Corrie." Seth had been impressed with how Corrinne had handled all the extra attention that Embry, Jared and his other friends had heaped on her. They knew she was special. He hoped, when all was said and done that night Corrinne would still want to be around him. He was starting to feel a little nervous about the whole thing. He felt Jacob sit down next to him and he offered a smile. "D'you think she'll get it...?" He asked when Corrinne decided to get up and go talk to Embry.

"Corrie's smart, and besides. It will answer the questions she asked Sam." Jacob admitted that even he had been surprised when he heard how Corrinne was connected to Sam. And he was even more surprised when he heard from Seth how Sam generally seemed to be protective of her too. "I don't think we're going to have to worry. She has all of us here, Seth. We'll be able to help sort things out if she gets spooked." Jacob watched as the remaining individuals involved gathered. He caught sight of Embry, who was playing a game of catch with Corrinne. "She gets along with almost anyone, it looks like."

"It doesn't surprise me, actually." Sam spoke up now. He'd come over to see how Jacob was doing. Granted, he and Jacob hadn't really been buddy buddy since the pack split, but now that Corrinne was involved, he figured they had better at least be civil to each other again. He nodded in greeting to Sue Clearwater and Billy Black. He didn't even look in Leah's direction. "She probably hasn't had many friends since she left here.... To her, we're probably a breath of fresh air."

"You just may be on to something there, Sam." Seth said, smiling. Corrinne had come back. She couldn't seem to make up her mind where she wanted to be. He patted his lap then. "I think we're going to be starting soon anyway."

"Okay." Corrinne didn't sit in his lap though. She wanted to sit beside Jacob too, so she sat between them. "Embry can throw the ball good."

"Yeah? Well, that doesn't surprise me one bit." Seth grinned, holding her close to him. He was starting to feel a little more comfortable with the situation. He was glad to see that Corrinne seemed to be feeling more at ease too. She leaned her head on his shoulder, yawning a bit. He rubbed her hair a bit. "Long day, huh?"

"Yeah...." She was watching as the last of the logs were put into place on the fire pit. She curled up closer to Seth then, as a breeze blew by them. "How do you stay so warm...?" She was cold.

"Heh..." Seth didn't answer her, but instead, he pulled an oversized gray hoodie out of his backpack, and put her into it. "There." She giggled at him, and he chuckled back. "We'll get you a more fitting one tomorrow when we go into town."

"No. I like this one." She snuggled up close to Seth then, as the fire was lit. She felt him pick her up and pull her into his lap, but she didn't mind. She was starting to understand that there was something very special about the friendship that she was developing with Seth. It was a cross between being best friends, and being his little sister. She didn't know if she liked the sound of that. She hoped it didn't mean they would get into sibling squabbles. She had heard about those, and they didn't sound like as much fun. She leaned against Seth's chest as he wrapped his arms around her to add to her warmth.

"You're going to love this." Jacob told her, smiling. "Going to your first bonfire is not something one soon forgets around here, huh, Seth?"

"You said that right." Seth's eyes lit up, as the first sparks of the fire began. He sat up more attentively, adjusting Corrinne so that she could see too, even if she wanted to rest against him. "The stories begin as soon as the last log is lit. Pay close attention, okay?"

Corrinne nodded. She noted that Sam had left, and after a quick scan of the small crowd, she spotted Sam with Emily on the other side. She sighed contentedly. This sure did beat reading time at the Home.

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The stories Corrinne heard that night both spooked, and mesmerized her at the same time. She barely uttered a word from the time Quil Senior began to speak to the time that the fire began to die. As the crowd began to part, she shook herself free of her daze, and laid her head on Seth's chest again. Her friend was holding her closer than before. She had many questions for him, but they would have to wait. Quil Senior was coming over to them. She looked up at him.

"Did you find our stories of any use?" It was apparent that someone had told him something about what she knew, but he didn't appear to be worried about it. He was smiling kindly though, and did not seem to mind what she knew.

"Yes, Sir." Corrinne knew an elder when she saw one. She buried her face in Seth's shirt then. She didn't know if she should mention the odd dreams.

"You have the Dream Gift." He said now. He crouched lower, to be at her level. He smiled at Seth. "Your intended is beautiful, Seth."

"I know." Seth's eyes shone with pride, as he turned Corrinne to face Quil's grandfather. "He just wants to talk. He's not mad, Corrie."

"Tell me about these dreams of yours sometime, Corrinne. I'm very interested. It has been a long while since we've had one that was gifted with precognitive dreams among us." He reached out, and laid a hand on Corrinne's head. It was a gesture of acceptance. However scandalous her father had been, it was not her fault, and he would make sure that she was accepted by everyone else too.

Corrinne merely nodded, as Seth began to get things together to go home. "Are there....bloodsuckers here now?" The idea of vampires being real, and nearby made her feel even colder than before. She pulled closer to Seth.

"Yes, however, we have a treaty with those that are nearby. They can't cross our line without permission from one of us elders." He smiled comfortingly. "And should one try it, you are in the best care possible. Seth may be one of our youngest, but he is also one of our fastest up and coming." He nodded in farewell to them then, and turned to return to Quil' s side.

***

The child found that she was stunned by what she was hearing. So not only were shape shifters real, but so were vampires? It was a lot to take in, and she found that she was far too exhausted try and understand it all at once. She let Seth carry her away from the bonfire site, though there wasn't too much in the way of conversation that passed between them. Her best friend and caregiver was tired too. When they reached Seth's house, she finally spoke again. "So, my dream, the night before you came back to get me, with the sand colored wolf...that was you...?"

"It sounds like it." Seth said tiredly. "I'm not really sure what those dreams of yours mean, Corrie. Only Old Quil would." He followed Leah and his mother inside with Corrinne. He was worried about something else too. His mother looked more worried than usual. He would talk to her once he had Corrinne in a nice warm bubble bath. "How about a bath before bed, Corrie?"

"Okay." She wasn't in the mood to be sociable anyway. She needed time alone to process everything that she had heard that night. A bubble bath sounded really good. "But I can't wash my hair by myself. I keep getting soap in my eyes. Ms. Martha used to do it for me."

"I'll help." Leah offered a smile. "Here, Seth, let me get her into the bath, okay?" She could tell Seth wanted to talk to their mother too. Leah wouldn't have minded being in on the conversation, but she would get it second hand anyway. When her brother relinquished Corrinne to her, she turned the girl towards her room to get her ready. She closed the door, just in case the conversation turned to things that Corrinne didn't need to hear.

Seth sat down as Sue settled on the couch. "Okay, Mom. Spill." He was never one to beat around the bush.

"I went over our budget for the coming month...." Sue began uncomfortably. "If they had done a background check on us before they let us have Corrinne, we would have never been allowed to take her in. Seth, the truth of the matter is, we simply can't afford another mouth."

"You're not going back on your word, are you?!" Seth was immediately alarmed, remembering the promises he'd made to Corrinne about never leaving her side. "You can't!"

"Seth, I don't want to, you understand." The woman closed her eyes briefly. "You also know that I would never want to do anything that would upset you or your sister...."

Seth was already silently fuming. He could see where this was heading already, and he didn't like it. "You can't take her back, Mom. You just can't."

"Who said anything about taking her back to the Home?" Sue asked now. She put a hand on Seth's shoulder. "I had a talk with Emily Young tonight. She and Sam have agreed to take Corrinne in for us. Emily was very ecstatic about it."

Seth was very quiet for a long moment. He wasn't sure exactly how he felt about Sam taking his imprinted one in, even if it meant she could stay on the rez with him. "But... I'm supposed to be there for her, Mom. Every step of the way, I'm supposed to be involved ... I promised her."

"She's young yet, Seth." Sue tried to sooth him. She looked up as Leah came in from the bathroom. "Is she having a nice bath?"

"Yeah...." Leah was eyeing the situation cautiously. "It's going to be too hard financially, isn't it?" Her voice was soft. She felt sorry for Seth. She couldn't imagine how he must be feeling at the aspect of not being able to have Corrinne by his side and where he could be with her every day. "Sam will take good care of her, Seth. He's honor bound, just like the rest of us, to protect those that are imprinted upon. Besides, from what I saw tonight, he really seems to like her." Even though Sam had not given her even a word of hello, Leah had watched him with Corrinne like a mother bear protecting her cub.

"That's not the point. Corrinne is my responsibility, and I should be the one taking care of her." Seth replied through clenched teeth. "I mean, come on. Sam provides for Emily, Quil takes care of Claire, and Jacob, when he can, always looks after Nessie."

"Well, Quil doesn't live with Claire though, you know...." Sue reminded her son. "And Jacob certainly doesn't live with the Cullens. I know it's going to be hard to accept, especially after what happened with you two and Sam when the pack split, but it's our only option."

Seth finally sighed in agreement. "Yes. I know...." He glanced to the bathroom door, shaking his head. "What if she hates me for this, Mom? I promised her...."

"You're only fifteen, Seth. You're still a child yourself. You shouldn't be caring for another full time. Corrinne really adores you. I think as long as you make it understood that you will still see her every day, she will be fine with it. All that's going to matter to that little girl is that you love her unconditionally, and are willing to do anything to make sure she is healthy and cared for." Sue smiled, pulling her son into a big hug. "That's what it means, you know, to love someone. You have to do what's in their best interest, especially when it's a child." Sue let him go, and went to her room to get ready for bed. Seth looked at Leah, still very distraught by what he'd been told.

"She'll be okay, Seth. Just let her know, in a special way, that you two are always going to be together evenO if it's not physically for a while." Leah's voice lacked the usual sarcasm and harshness that Seth had become accustomed to. In fact, it almost sounded sad. "I don't want her to go either. It was nice, having a younger sister around for a bit. Maybe we can still have her here for sleepovers and stuff. That could work. Mom wouldn't object to that...."

"No, she wouldn't...." Seth stood up, and went to make sure his bed was ready for Corrinne. He would talk to her about the move before he put her to bed, and hope that she would understand enough that she wouldn't be too mad.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six: Moving Day**

Corrinne knew something was bothering Seth before he opened his mouth to speak. He took his time, tucking her in, and making sure she had everything she needed. Finally, he sat down next to her on his bed, and pulled her close to him. He closed his eyes briefly. She couldn't stand it anymore. He seemed like he was really upset. "Seth? What's wrong?"

"Well ... nothing's really wrong. There's just something I need to talk to you about." Seth spoke softly. "My family is ... not doing that well, financially." Seth paused, gathering his thoughts. "We ... can't ... keep you here with us." He swallowed, and felt her tense. He did his best to sooth her, by laying her head on his chest. "You're going to move in with Sam and Emily."

"I don't want to...." Corrinne said now, looking up at Seth. "I want to stay here." She looked up at Seth. His expression told her that he wanted that too.

"I know you do, Corrie, and I want you to stay too, but it's just not financially possible right now. I have the job at the home, but it's only temporary. Sam and Emily can provide for you...." He stopped short. The girl was sniffling. "Oh come on, Corrie." He put her in his lap. "You like Sam, don't you?"

"Yes, but I love you..." Corrinne replied quietly. "You're my best friend in the whole world, Seth."

"Yeah, I know...." Seth held her closer still. _And if there was any other way, Sam would not be the person I'd send you to. Sam's a good guy, but there's been a lot of bad blood between us over the last couple of years. _"The good thing about going to stay with Sam is that it's only a few houses away, and I can come see you every single day. I can even pick you up and take you to school."

Corrinne relaxed a bit, hearing that. "You promise you won't leave without me, right?"

"Not a chance." Seth smiled. "We'll go over there tomorrow, and I'll stay as long as you want me to. I don't think Sam and Emily will be too hasty in making me leave."

Corrinne nodded, clinging tightly to Seth. "Will you stay here until I'm asleep...?" She doubted Sam would do that.

"Yeah, sure." He got up, and laid her back down, tucking her back in. He pulled up the chair from his desk, and sat down next to her. He began to hum an old Quileute folk song. She reached for his hand, and he gave it to her, smiling gently. He watched her eyes flutter shut almost against her will. He stayed in his place for many minutes after that, before he got up, and carefully left his room. He left the door cracked.

"How is she?" Leah asked. Her voice was quiet, sympathetic. She pushed her long hair over her shoulders.

"Upset, but not mad at me." Seth was relieved of that. He ran a hand through his hair, and wandered into the kitchen. His sister followed.

"Everything is going to work out just fine, Seth. Sam and Emily are good people. I'm sure they'll do right by her." Leah poured them both a glass of milk, and she handed her brother his. "Just be there for her as much as possible after her move. That will help her with the transition."

"If I had my way, _I _would move into Sam's house with her." Seth replied, drinking his glass in three gulps. "I know how irrational that sounds...."

"Not at all." Leah replied. "I just hope Sam doesn't try to use his raising her against us...." It was a thought that had just occurred to her, and she wished it hadn't.

"He wouldn't." Seth replied, setting his glass in the sink. "I'm turning in." He didn't want to buy into Leah's crazy ideas. His own ideas for Sam's eagerness were playing in his head over and over. There was something eerie about how attached to the little girl Sam appeared to be. He didn't want to think about it anymore, so he turned on the TV, and laid on the couch. "Good night, Leah."

" 'night, Seth." Leah went into her room, and closed the door.

***

Seth stalled in taking Corrinne to Sam's the next day. He took his time helping her get ready to leave, and then he found excuses for them to stop on the way there. Corrinne thought she understood why. Her best friend wasn't any happier about this than she was. When they finally did approach Sam's, she tightened her grip on his hand. He smiled encouragingly, as he rang the doorbell.

"Come on in." Emily's voice called out. Seth led the way inside. "We were wondering when you would get here." Emily smiled at Corrinne. "I have been baking apples this morning. Do you want to sprinkle the cinnamon on them for me?" She was doing her best to put Corrinne at ease. She was certain that Corinne was not happy about the prospect of leaving her Seth. Emily could only imagine what would happen if it was an opposite situation. She would be devestataed too. She smiled as Corrinne took the cinnamon from her, and carefully began to dispense it over her apple slices. She turned to Seth then. "Sam's in the back, fixing up a room for her."

"Oh ... okay...." He watched Corrinne for a long moment, and then decided to let Emily watch her. He wanted a word with Sam anyway. He smiled. "Hey, Corrie, I'll be right back. I'm just going to go take your stuff back to Sam, alright?"

"Okay, Seth." She barely looked up. She was concentrating on just the right amount of cinnamon per slice of apple.

Seth shrugged. Maybe Emily did know more about children than he though. He took Corrinne's suitcase back to the room where he heard Sam working. "Hey...."

"Hey." Sam gave him a smile. "It's not much, but it's something for her...." He gestured around the small room. "It's the best we could do on short notice."

"I'm sure she'll love it." Seth replied. He laid her small suitcase on the bed. "Why, Sam? I mean, the sudden interest?"

"The elders are very interested in her ... I just want to take care of her, and make sure she's healthy and happy...." Sam replied. He didn't know exactly what Seth was getting at, but he was beginning suspect that the boy was feeling a little suspicious. "You don't have to worry. This isn't some ploy to make you and Leah join the pack again. We know when to leave well enough alone." His voice now held an edge to it.

"Is it because you feel like you somehow have more of a right to her?" Seth asked now. He just didn't understand why Sam would so readily want to take in a child, when he and Emily didn't even have one of their own yet.

"Hang on a second, Seth. Your mother approached us. It was not the other way around." Sam now closed the door. There was going to be an argument, and he did not want Emily ,or Corrinne to be subject to it. "You have some nerve coming in here all suspicious. We're doing you a favor."

"Yes, but for what reason? You have no reason to be so generous to me or my family." Seth replied through clenched teeth.

"This isn't about _you_, Seth. It's about her." Sam jabbed a finger in the general direction of the kitchen indicating Corrinne. "As the lead Alpha, it is my duty to take care of everyone that comes in contact with us. That includes the Rez, Forks, and anyone else that becomes involved in our lives. When a pack member or former pack member, in this case, imprints, the entire population of us is responsible for that imprint. Why do you think we had to rethink our strategy when Jacob imprinted on the Cullen child?"

Seth felt like lunging at him. "She's my intended. It should be my responisibility."

"So be responsible, and don't bite the hand that feeds you." Sam replied. His voice was calm now, and without the harsh tones it had held a second ago. "I promise you, I have no ill intent for this. I just want to look out for her, Seth." He had taken on a big brother tone with Seth. And for an instant, Seth set aside their past discrepencies, and smiled.

"I'm sorry, Sam. I didn't mean to...."

"Oh hey, I don't blame you. To be perfectly honest, when your mother asked us, I was very much ready to say no. I don't have the experience with children that Quil and Jacob have. I said yes because I knew it was the right thing to do." He put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "And you are doing the right thing too, by her. She might feel a little nervous, but Emily and I will take good care of her."

"Speaking of her nerves. Do you mind if I stay until she's ready for me to go?" Seth smiled a bit. "She asked me to stay."

"No problem." Sam smiled then. "We better get back out there, before Emily thinks we've gotten into a fight." He led the way out of the room. Seth took a long look around the room. He sighed deeply, and walked out, closing the door behind him.

***

The day wore on. Seth stayed out of Sam and Emily's way for the most part, as they began to business of being parental figures to his Corrinne. He was only there as a security item for Corrinne. Corrinne, for her part, was very perceptive to Emily and Sam's words of wisdom, and guidance. It was only when Seth mentioned that Jacob needed to speak to him and Leah that she suddenly became clingy. He took her by the hand, and led her outside. She looked up at him, sadly.

"I don't want you to go...." She clung tightly to his hand. "Can't you stay...?"

"Sorry, Corrie. I have to go. Jake needs me." He squatted to her level. "Do you remember earlier today when I stopped at the store?" He put a hand in his pocket, and brought a small box out of it. "I bought you this." He opened the box, and revealed a very intricately made necklace. On the end, as a pendant, was a sandy colored wolf. "This is a part of me, Corrinne, and I want you to have it. That way, even when we're apart, I'm always right here beside you." He put it on her, and smiled, as she fingered the pendant. "No matter what, I will always be here for you."

"It's beautiful, Seth. I'll never take it off." The girl hugged Seth tightly, and smiled. "Will you come visit every day, Seth?"

"You bet!" Seth picked her up, and held her tightly in his arms. "And also, Sam has my number. If you really need me, just call, and I'll come." He set her down again as Sam came out.

"Dinner is ready." He said this to Corrinne. "Why don't you go in and help Emily set the table."

"Okay...." Corrinne looked up at Seth. Her friend nodded, smiling in encouragement. "Bye, Seth...."

"I'll be back tomorrow. Don't worry." Seth felt like it was the children's home scene all over again. He watched her go inside, then looked at Sam. "Please take care of her, Sam...."

"We will." Sam shook hands with Seth, and then he turned and went back inside.

***

Corrinne felt empty, as she got ready for bed in her new room. She tried to imagine what Seth might be doing. But that only upset her more. She looked up as a knock came on the door. "Who is it?" She rushed to finish pulling her night shirt over her head.

"It's Emily. Can I come in?"

"Yeah, I'm good." She let Emily in. The older girl smiled at her, and Corrinne couldn't help by smile back. "What's going on?" Emily seemed a bit anxious.

"Old Quil is here." She pulled out a brush. "Can I brush your hair out for you?"

"Okay...." Corrinne was a little nervous now. Since the night before, when Sam's father had approached her about her dreams, Corrinne had been regretting having told Sam about them. she didn't know what they thought she could do, but she was willing to bet it was because of that Sam and Emily had agreed to take her in. She felt Emily pull the brush through her hair. It went through smoothly. "Does he want to talk to me again?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact..." Emily was braiding the girl's hair now. "Your hair is beautiful, Corrie."

"Thank you." Corrinne went with Emily after that to talk to Quil Ateara Senior, knots gripping her stomach.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven: Explanations**

Corrinne was just little above nervous when she encountered Levi Uley without Seth there. Emily was sitting next to her on their couch, an arm around her for comfort. Old Quil was talking to Sam right now, so he hadn't noticed her coming in. She heard him mention fostering and adopting a couple of times to his son, but beyond that, she oblivous to any other conversation that was taking place. She leaned against Emily's arm, and looked up at her. "What does he want with me?" She had a pretty good idea.

"I think he just wants to talk." Emily straightened up, as elderly man came over, and sat across from her newly adopted daughter. She felt Corrinne stiffen in reflex, and she rubbed the girl's back to sooth her. "It's a pleasure to have you in our home."

"Thank you." Their visitor replied, and his gaze turned to Corrinne now. "It's been a very difficult week for you, I presume."

Corrinne merely noddeod at that. The week had been full of emotions, what with meeting Seth and then being adopted by his family, and then brought to live with Sam and Emily instead. She still wasn't sure what she thought of the Reservation as a whole. She had very scattered memories of having been there before. But they didn't make sense, the ones she remembered. The only memory that stayed with her to make any sense was the one she had of Sam. "Yes."

"I'm sorry things haven't been as smooth as you'd hoped. Things should be calmer now." Old Quil smiled then. "Now then, you remember the conversation we had last night?"

Corrinne nodded. She hadn't bothered to ask Seth what any of that had meant. She had hoped at the time that Seth would be there upon their first meeting with Sam's father. "I'm not sure what you meant though.... They're just dreams."

"Of course that's all they would seem to be to you. You were not brought up on the Reservation as you should have been from the beginning." Levi paused briefly. "Do you know what precognition is?" He doubted it. It was clear whatever Home she had been in, Corrinne's caregivers had probably been really straight laced.

"No...." Corrinne wondered if that was some kind of magic. And then she doubted that. Even with the secret of the shapeshifters out to her now, she couldn't bring herself to believe that she was anything more than a dreamer with a vivid imagination at night.

"It's the ability to see things in the future, before they happen. Some people have waking visions. Others, like yourself, have them at night. Can you think of any dreams you've had recently that remind you of current situations?" He sat quietly, watching Corrinne's expression. She was taking his words into consideration, and trying to comprehend the meaning behind them. He heard her gasp then. "A memory, I see."

Corrinne thought about the nightmare she had on her first night on the Reservation, where the black wolf, which he now knew was Sam, had eaten Seth. Her eyes widened. It had meant something alright. It meant the Sam was going to become more important in her life than Seth. Sam had "swallowed" Seth's importance for the moment. "The night I came here..." She told the man all about it.

"I think you might be misinterpeting that just a little bit." Quil's grandfather smiled gently then. "Sam has no intention of trying to make himself more important to you than Seth. Seth imprinted on you. That means, in a nutshell, that you are his whole world now."

"Imprint..." She had only heard that word in relation to animals who copy the first thing they see after being born. "But, what does that mean?" She had the strong suspicion it had a lot to do with why she was so attached to Seth; why she didn't mind it when he held her in his lap, and it also explained why he'd had a hard time with letting her come live with Sam.

"Let me try." Sam said now. He came over, and pulled her into his lap as he sat down next to Emily. "When we imprint, it means that the person we imprint upon becomes the object of our affection. Now, sometimes, our imprint might be a bit too young for romantic involvement, and that's okay. Do you know Quil?"

"Yeah. He's Jacob's cousin."

"Well, Quil imprinted on Claire, Emily's niece . Claire's only four right now, so there's nothing remotely romantic about it for Quil. He takes care of her, and makes sure she's safe and happy. Just like Seth's done for you. Right now, you see him as maybe a brother, or a best friend, but some day, when you're older, that's going to change."

Corrinne found she didn't believe the part about her relationship with Seth changing into romance. She loved him too much as a best friend and brother for that. She wrinkled her nose. "No way."

Sam chuckled. "Yes way." Her reaction probably wouldn't have offended Seth either. She was, after all, a nine-year-old girl. "You'll change your tune. Just wait." He turned to Old Quil then. "Do you think she foresaw her move here?"

"That's precisely what I think it means." Levi turned to Corrinne now. "As I told you last night, you're the first Dreamer we've had on the Reservation in quite some time. When you get older, others will come and ask you for an interpretation of their dreams. You may or may not have answers for them right now, but as you become more accustomed to figuring out the meanings in your own dreams, it will get easier." He turned to his bag now. "I've brought you a gift I think you will find very useful." He held out a book to her. "Here."

Corrinne took the book from him. It was heavy, and leather-bound. She opened it, and was surprised to see that much of it was written in a language she was not familiar with. She looked up at Sam, frowning. "I can't read this."

"That's because it's in our native language." Sam replied. "I'll help you read it." He intended to start helping Corrinne become more familiar with her own heritage. It was a role that her father should've played. Sam suddenly realized that he was going to be a father figure to someone who no longer had one. He hoped he would do it right, since his own father had never been around. He glanced at Quil's grandfather then, and smiled. They would very subtly, and slowly introduce Corrinne to that which she rightfully deserved to be a part of. "But right now, I think it's time for bed."

"Can I call Seth first?" She didn't want to wait until morning to tell Seth all about the book, and the imprinting. She had to talk to him.

"I don't see why not." Emily answered before Sam could. She figured the calls would stop once Corrinne got used to them. "I'll bring the cordless into your room, okay?" She watched Corrinne go into her bedroom.

"We can't give in to her every whim. Even Quil and Jacob don't...."

"Let it be for now, Son." Levi advised. "It's like you said. She and Seth have a very strong bond. It's one of the strongest I have seen between an imprinted one and a shapeshifter since your mother and I." He put his coat on. "Let it be." He said again, as he nodded his goodbye to Sam and Emily.

***

Seth all but jumped on the phone receiver when it rang. He and Leah had just gotten in from a quick run of perimeter with Jacob. "Hello?"

"Hi, Seth!" It was Corrinne. She sounded so cute on the other end. Seth flopped on the couch.

"Hey, Corrie. Everything okay over there?" He was concerned. He'd told Sam that she could call if she really needed to.

"I just wanted to talk to you before I went to bed. I learned some stuff tonight." She curled up in her new bed, and began to tell Seth all about the things Levi Uley had told her.

Seth didn't say anything. He just let her talk. It felt good to hear that she had done so well after he'd left. She sounded good to him. "Yep, that's exactly what happened the day we met. I ... didn't know how to explain it to you. Sorry." He said when she got to the part about imprinting.

"It's okay! Sam and his dad explained it. " Corrinne looked up as Emily and Sam came in. "I have to go, Seth. It's time for bed."

"Alright. Well, I have to go work at the Home tomorrow. I forgot about that today, and Ms. Martha called looking for me. But I will come see you as soon as I get off."

This didn't make Corrinne happy at all, and Seth heard it in her voice when she replied. "Okay, Seth. I think I'll go visit Embry then." She wasn't happy about that. She liked Embry alright, and he appeared to care for her too, but she just really wanted to be with Seth all the time.

"Okay. Well, I tell you what. I'll call Sam when I get out of work, and we'll do something fun together." He wanted to hear her smiling again. He didn't like the idea that he was making her sad. "Maybe we can get Jacob to take us into Port Angeles or something."

"Ooh, can we go to a movie? I've never been."

"Sure! That sounds like a fun idea." Seth smiled at her innocence. He wanted to give her the things she'd never had a chance to have.

"Yes!" Now Corrinne was excited to go to sleep, and go through her day tomorrow. If she could just make it through Seth's time at work, she'd be able to spend the rest of the day with him. "Good night, Seth. I love you."

"Love you too. Hey, give Sam the phone, okay?" Seth wanted to talk to Sam about what Corrinne had told him. He just wanted to get clarification, since she was young yet.

Corrinne handed the phone to Sam, and watched him walk off with it, talking to her Seth in a low voice, as Emily closed the door so she could tuck her in. "Emily, thank you for taking me in so I wouldn't have to leave Seth. He'd be even sadder now if I had to leave the rez." She smiled. Using their own slang already, she realized.

"I know. You're welcome." Emily kissed her on the top of her head. "Sleep well, Corrie. Sam and I will be right down the hall if you need anything during the night. Don't be afraid to come get us."

"Can you leave a light on...?" Corrinne remembered the night she'd moved into Seth's house, and instead of having a light on, Seth had stayed in the room with her while she slept.

"Sure." Emily figured she'd come in and turn it off after the girl was asleep. She turned a mini-lamp on. "Good night, sweetie."

"Good night, Emily." She knew instinctively that she'd never be able to call anyone on the Reservation Mom or Dad. It would just seem weird to her. Emily left the room, and closed her door. She curled up in her bed, and laid there for a while. She glanced to the window, and saw that it was open. She tried to guess how far it was to Seth's. She figured she could probably get there on her own, if she wanted to go bad enough. She didn't think Seth would mind. She pulled on her robe, and her battered shoes, before climbing out of the window, and heading towards Seth's.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight: Lessons from a Tide Pool**

"Seth...?" Seth felt someone shaking him urgently.

"Mm ... quit it, Leah...." He attempted to roll over, intending to ignore his sister's pestering.

"I'm not Leah." The voice said clearly. Seth's eyes opened, and widened, as he turned, facing Corrinne.

"Corrie!" He almost shouted. He pulled her close to him. She was ice cold. It must've been below twenty outside again. He wrapped her in his blanket. "What are you doing here? Sam and Emily are going to be worried sick!" He grabbed for his phone, and was about to dial the Uleys, but Corrinne wouldn't let him. "Corrie, I have to call them." He said softly. "Do you want them to be worried?"

"What's she doing here?" Leah's voice spoke up from behind the pair.

"She ran away from home." Seth mumbled, as he tried to pry Corrinne's hand off the receiver. "Corrie, come on. I can't let you stay here without calling Sam and telling him where you are." He looked to Leah pleadingly when it didn't appear that Corrinne was going to listen to them. He watched Leah very carefully pry her away from the phone, and take her into the kitchen. He dialed Sam's number then.

Sam picked up on the third ring. "Yeah?" He had caller ID, so he knew it was Seth. "She's already in bed, Seth."

"I'd check again if I were you." Seth replied, trying to sound humorous. "She's here at my house. She ran away."

"What?!" Sam looked at Emily. "Seth says Corrinne's at his house." He blinked when Emily came back in after going to check on their adopted child a minute later. He returned to the telephone conversation. "Why'd she do it?"

"Who knows." Seth sighed. "I think she just doesn't want to be away from me. Why don't you let her stay here tonight, and I'll bring her back in the morning."

Sam frowned. He didn't want to make allowances for what she did. "Or you can bring her back when she's asleep. She shouldn't be rewarded for running away. Even being on the reservation, it's not safe for her to go wandering about."

Seth nodded. He agreed with Sam, but he worried that he would make Corrinne upset with him if he brought her back to where she didn't want to be. "Alright." He hung up. "Corrinne, come here. We need to talk." Leah brought her back to him. "Corrie. Sam's not happy with you right now."

"Is he going to ground me?" Corrinne wondered what that would be like. She didn't think it was a good thing.

"I don't know." Seth replied. He pulled her into his lap. "Why'd you do this? I thought you were going to wait for me to come see you tomorrow, Sweetie?"

Corrinne pouted. "I was going to, and then I was just laying there, and I couldn't go to sleep, so I came here, hoping I could stay for a while." She looked up at Seth. "Are you mad at me too?"

Seth sighed. In truth, he was glad to see her. He'd been having a hard time going to sleep at first too. "Corrinne, I know you're scared, and upset about what happened, but you should realize I had no other choice. It's not like we're apart forever."

"Yeah. " Leah sat down on the other side of her. "What did Sam say, Seth?"

Seth winked at Leah, and then spoke. "He said she can stay here, but tomorrow, she has to go home." He got up, and carried Corrinne into his room. "Okay, Corrie. Bedtime." He laid her down in his bed, and tucked her in. He sat down in his chair, and held her hand, just like he'd done the night before, and began to sing to her softly. He watched her fall asleep. He carefully got up and went out to the living room. "He wants me to bring her back to the house. I'll wait 'til she's completely asleep."

"I didn't think he'd want to reward her for running off." Leah was chewing her bottom lip. "What if she keeps doing it?"

"I know, I was thinking that too. She's more attached to me than we thought." Seth paced, running a hand through his hair. "What can I do though, Leah? It's not like I don't want her to be here."

Leah frowned. "Yeah, but she's Sam and Emily's responsibility now. You have to think of them." The girl sighed. "I'm not sure, Seth. Maybe tomorrow we should go and talk to Sam with Jacob. Together we should all be able to help her come to some kind of compromise about having to live away from you." In truth, Leah found that she was almost envious of her brother. "Either way, her running about at night is a really bad idea."

"Yeah...." Seth went back inside, and wrapped Corrinne in a warm blanket, and carefully picked her up. Cradling her close to him, he carried her out of the room. "Can you get the door?" Leah opened the door, and holding her closer so she'd be warm, Seth carried Corrinne outside. "Sorry, Corrie." He whispered this, and then ran all the way to Sam's house with her. He didn't want to keep her in the cold too long.

***

Sam was waiting when Seth got there. He let the boy in, and watched as Seth laid her down in her own bed in her room. When Seth came out, he smiled in gratitude. "Thanks, Seth." He didn't know what else to say. He would have to have a stern talking to with Corrinne the next morning about this.

"No problem." Seth ran a hand through his hair. "It surprised me too, because I thought she was taking it all too well." He sat down in a chair. "I hope she's not going to be mad at me in the morning when she finds out that she's here...."

"I'll tell her I came and got her." Sam replied. He didn't think having her realize that Seth had been in on her return home wouldn't help her be any less rebellious. "I don't know how I'm going to deal with this just yet. I have to let her know that what she did was wrong, but if I come on too strong...."

"Just be firm with her, Sam." Emily advised. "In the meantime, it is late. We should probably get back to bed." She walked Seth to the door. "Thanks for bringing her back."

"Sure. No problem." The younger boy glanced towards Corrinne's room again before leaving. He hoped he'd done the right thing by her.

***

Corrinne blinked when she woke up the next morning. She wasn't in Seth's bed. She was back at Sam's house. She looked around. Had she dreamed going to Seth's? No. She hadn't. She eyed a blanket she knew that belonged to Seth's mom. She climbed out of bed, and went out into the kitchen. Sam and Emily were out there.

"Good morning." Sam's face was serious. "You know we're going to have to talk about what happened last night."

"Yes, Sam." Corrie replied, climbing into a chair next to him. "Am I in big trouble?" She had never really been in trouble before.

"Well...." Sam shook his head. "You can't do that again. It's dangerous for you to run around by yourself at night, Corrie. Even with all of the wolves on the reservation, safety is not always a promise. You give me your word right now that you won't do anything like that again."

"I won't. I promise." Corrinne bowed her head. She knew she'd upset Sam, and that didn't make her feel good. "I'm sorry...."

Sam smiled now, and laid a hand on her shoulder. "It's alright, Corrie. I'm sure you're not the first to try something like that, you probably won't be last. Let's just try and be brave for Seth from now on, huh?"

"Okay." She turned to Emily now. The young girl was preparing a brown bagged lunch. "What's that for? Is Sam going to work?"

"Nope. You're going to school." Sam told her. "We're going to get you registered so you can start today."

Corrinne blinked. She'd been hoping to go visit Embry. "But I thought I was going to see Embry today."

"You are. After school. Emily and I have to work, so Embry's going to watch you." Sam had worked out details of that at the pack meeting he'd called early in the he morning. "Don't worry. You'll be in good hands. I think he's going to take you to First Beach for a while, and meet up with Quil and Jared later on. It's good you get to know these guys. They're going to be a part of your life in more ways than one."

Corrinne had a strong feeling that Seth wasn't going to like that too much. For reasons she didn't understand, she realized that Seth ran with a different pack that wasn't a part of Sam's. "Is Seth okay with it?"

"That's besides the point." Sam replied firmly. "My job isn't to do everything Seth's way. I have to do what is best for you." He nodded towards her bedroom. "Go get dressed while we make breakfast."

Corrinne went and did as Sam asked. Sam was a lot stricter than she thought he'd be. But she found she didn't mind that too much. It sure beat being at the Home. And she had a lot of people on the reservation that were treating her like she was some sort of priceless antique. Levi Uley for one, and then Emily and Sam, who had not thought about having children yet, had just taken her in without a question of whether that wanted to. She had the things she'd lost hope on ever getting, and she had Seth to thank for it. She made a promise to herself that she would be as good as could be, so that she wouldn't make her guardians or Seth worry. When she went back out of the kitchen, fully dressed in a nice skirt and blouse she'd found in the closet, she paused briefly, before giving Sam a big hug. "I promise I won't be trouble."

"I know you won't." Sam hugged her back, holding her close. He found that he really did love Corrinne as his own child already. She was smart, and cute, and so very innocent. He wanted to protect her as much he possibly could. "Alright. Let's eat some breakfast. Emily made fresh cinnamon buns."

"Mm! That sounds good." She scrambled into the chair that Sam pulled out for her, and began to eat. Sam watched her, smiling. He knew then that things would be alright. It would just take time for them all to get used to each other, and he planned to try and make things as easy as he could for her.

***

Embry paced under an old tree near the elementary school. He wasn't surprised Sam had chosen him to look after Corrinne. He was surprised that she had wanted to see him, when she was Seth's imprint. He figured that it was probably because Seth had told her he was busy. he wasn't going to complain. He thought Corrinne was neat. They had a lot of stuff in common, actually. He perked up when he began to see children streaming out of the school. He flagged Corrinne down, and smiled when she approached. "Hey there. How was your first day?"

"Hard. We're doing long-division. It's so boring." Corrie kicked the dirt with the toe of her ragged shoe.

"Hey hey now, we don't take it out on the earth." He smiled. "I know what you need. How about we go for an ice cream?" He took her hand, and led her to away from the throng of children that were going to meet their parents or siblings. He caught sight of Quil, and waved. He was picking Claire up from pre-K.

"I don't think I really want ice cream...." Corrie replied, feeling a little self-conscious, after the day she'd had. "I think I just want to go home...."

"Well, you can't do that right now. Why don't we go to the beach?" Embry could tell something was bothering the girl. He wasn't sure he could get her to talk to him, but he felt it was his duty to help her through whatever it was. He led the way down towards First Beach, not saying much to her. "Do you want to tell me what's bothering you?"

Corrie shrugged. "Everyone was talking about me. And about my father. I don't even know who he is. And I was angry."

Embry could most definitely relate to that. He squatted in the sand next to the girl, and hugged her. "I know, they can be pretty rough. I've heard it all my life. Even now in high school I hear it. It's not exactly very kind is it?"

"Why do they care who my parents are? It's not like they have to worry about it."

"Yeah. I know. I know all about that." He stood up, and started walking the beach with her. "Sometimes, Corrie, people, children in particular, don't like what's different and strange. They think by talking about it, and expressing their feelings on it, they can change things." He looked down at her. "But don't let them make you feel like you're any less special than you are, Corrie. You are a very special little girl. For more than one reason. You, not them, were chosen by Seth Clearwater. You, not them have the gift of Dreaming. So what if you don't have your parents. You have a whole Reservation that loves you, and will do anything to protect you." He smiled when he saw her crack a smile. "That's better! Now come on, I want to show you something." He took her over to a shallow tide pool. "Look at this."

"Wow. They're all so awesome, and they live together." Corrie knelt to get a better look. "They're so different."

"Yet, they all live in one community." Embry hoped that Corrie got the meaning behind his words. "Just like we do."

Corrinne understood then. Embry wanted her to see that just because they were different didn't mean they didn't belong on the Reservation. "Thanks, Embry. You're a good friend."

"I hope so." Embry replied, pulling her to her feet, as the water came rushing in. "How does that ice cream sound now?"

"It sounds good. I'll race you to the top of the hill!" She took off.

Embry chuckled, and he followed his charge deliberately going slower, knowing he could have easily outrun her, thanks to his shape shifting genes. He had the feeling he'd just helped her understand something very important. He made a note to tell Sam about their conversation, and he would make sure Jacob passed it on to Seth. That way, if it came up again, they'd all be prepared.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine:Meeting the Cullens **

"Hey, Embry!" Jared and Quil smiled as Embry came in with Corrinne. "Good timing. We just got here."

'Heh. I guess that is good timing." He set Corrinne down. "Hey, you pick out whatever you want, and let the lady know, okay?" Embry walked over to his friends, and smiled. "I'm on babysitting duty today."

"And here we thought Quil was a cradle robber."Jared smirked. "No, really. Seth's is cute."

"Cut it out, guys. She's had a pretty rough day today." Embry watched her get her ice cream. "Kids can be so cruel." He looked at his two friends. "They were picking on her all day."

Jared shook his head. "I heard it from my cousin today, when I got home. She said that they were saying she'd never be imprinted upon, and things like that."

"Heh. I guess they don't know as much as think they do." Embry moved off the chair so that Corrinne could sit. "Corrinne, this is Jared, and you've already met Quil." He introduced his friends. "Quil's with me in Jake's pack." He said it in a low voice, so that it stayed within the foursome. "There are a lot of us."

Corrinne nodded, but she felt like she was missing something. Wasn't Seth a part of the pack too? She shrugged, and began to eat her ice cream. It tasted so much better, when it wasn't in a plastic single serving cup. She forgot for an instant all about the horrible day she'd had in school. For the moment, she felt wanted. She felt Embry run a hand through her hair, much like an older brother would have. She looked up at him. "Embry ... how come there are two packs?" Her voice was soft, barely audible except to the three boys that were nearer to her.

"Long story short, Jake and Sam didn't really see eye to eye, and so Jacob went off on his own. Seth and Leah Clearwater, for reasons we still have yet to figure out, broke away and followed him. Quil and I followed soon after. Jacob has always been really close friends with us, not to mention the fact Quil is his cousin." He smiled. "You don't have to worry. All of us, whether we're with Jacob or Sam, are going to take care of you. Pretend we're just one big family that wants to look after it's community. The fact that there are two packs is really just a formality at this point." He shrugged, hugging her gently.

Corrinne admitted she hadn't been this happy in a long time. Her heart swelled from the love she just felt constantly surrounding her now. She smiled at Quil and Jared then. They were eyeing her with a kind of adoration she was not used to. But she found that she was getting used to it slowly. "Do you guys want some?"

"We're good." Jared replied for them both. He turned to Embry. "So are you going to be her regular sitter?" He was only a little surprised Sam hadn't approached one of his own pack members about taking care of Corrinne.

"Only when Seth isn't available." Embry smiled gently, reaching for a napkin. "Hey, Corrinne, you need one of these?"

"Yeah." Corrinne took it. Then she looked up at him. "What time is it?" She wanted to be ready when Seth got off work, in case they went out or something.

"Oh, it's about time for Seth to get off work." Embry smiled, knowing what she wanted. "I guess that means we should probably head back to Sam's."

"Can I just go over to Seth's? She was figuring that Leah would be home by now. She wouldn't mind watching out for her for a little while."

"Or I can take her to my place." Jacob's voice said from behind them. "I have to run by Seth's later."

"Guys, Sam wanted me to take her back to his place." Embry said now. He spoke firmly. He knew what Jacob was up to. He was trying to keep Corrinne with their pack, just to defy Sam. He remembered that he still had to talk to Jacob about the schoolyard issue. He pulled Jacob to the side, as Quil and Jared distracted Corrinne. "Jacob, you need to tell Seth about this later, but Corrinne was being teased viscously at school today."

Jacob sighed. "I was hoping that wouldn't happen, but I guess it was wishful thinking. Yeah, I'll talk to Seth. I'm guessing you have to report it to Sam?" He could see how this was going to work already. Sam was going to know every single thing that was going on with Corrinne. He couldn't be mad at Embry though. It was part and parcel for him being chosen to watch over Corrinne. Though, if he wanted to, he could've told Embry not to do it anymore. Though, that wouldn't have been fair to Corrinne.

"Yeah. Per the agreement." Embry ran a hand through his hair. "I can't let you take her with you, even if she is going to meet up with Seth. She's my responsibility until Sam gets home."

"Yeah, well, Seth is waiting for her, and I don't think it's a good idea to keep his intended from him for too long. It's physically painful." Jacob looked Embry right in the eyes. "Come on, Embry. You know nothing bad will happen to her."

Embry sighed. It wasn't like he didn't know that. Being away from his imprint was hard too. "Look. I'm sorry, it's just that Sam was very clear. I need to take her either back to my house or his."

"I don't want to go to Sam's though." Corrinne moved over to Jacob. "Can you take me with you?"

"Yeah, sure." Jacob grinned. "Don't worry, Embry. I'll explain things to Sam." _Sam is not going to keep her from spending time with me either. _He eyed Embry. His fellow pack member seemed really wary of it all. "This is fine, you know. It'll be fine." He was trying to reassure himself as well as Embry. He knew how Sam could get when he didn't get his way. He took Corrinne's hand. "See you guys later." And he would. They did a nightly run.

"Bye, Embry! See you tomorrow!" Corrinne called to her friend. She followed Jacob out of the ice cream parlor. She got an icy feeling in her stomach then, however. Being alone with Jacob suddenly felt a little intimidating. She didn't think he'd hurt her. That wasn't her concern. Her concern was that he was doing something underhanded. Maybe Sam really wouldn't be okay with this.

"Don't worry, Corrie. In the end, you were going to end up at Seth's." Jacob worried about Sam's reaction too, but he shook it off. "Hey, Seth's going to meet us off the rez today. Come on." He got her settled in his rabbit which was parked outside. He got in the driver's seat, and after making sure she was buckled in properly, he drove off.

***

Corrinne's mouth dropped open when she saw the house Jacob drove up to. "Seth's here? Who lives here?"

"One of my best friends." Jacob replied quietly. "Now, Corrie...." He didn't get the chance to finish his statement. Seth came up to the car in his sandy colored wolf form. "Hey, Seth. What's up?"

Corrinne blinked, her eyes wide in shock, as the Seth-wolf put his front paws in her lap. She tentatively scratched his ears. "Pretty."

Seth got off her, and bounded near the house. Corrinne got out of the car, and followed after him. By the time she caught up with him, he had phased back into his human form, and was fully dressed. He scooped her up, and hugged her close to him. "Did you have a good time with Embry today?"

"Sam made me go to school." Corrinne made a face, and sighed, before hugging him closer. "But Embry made it okay to go again."

"Embry's a good guy." Seth nodded. Then he frowned. "Jacob, did you tell Sam you were taking her off the Reservation?"

"Hey, it'll be fine. She's with you." He went inside.

Seth scowled at Jacob's back. "We shouldn't be here too long. I don't think he told Sam anything." Then he grinned, setting her down. "The family you're about to meet is very unique. They're going to just love you." He turned, and saw Bella Cullen standing on the porch, smiling. "Hey, Bella. This is Corrinne." He grinned proudly.

Corrinne glanced over, and her eyes widened. The girl that stood on the porch was pale, and gorgeous. "Hi...." She moved close to Seth, immediately suspicious of her.

"Aww, Corrie." Seth picked her up. "Heh, she's a bit shy, Bella." He carried her to the porch. "Corrie, this is Bella Cullen. She's a really good friend of mine."

"It's nice to meet you, Corrinne. Why don't we go inside. I think Esme made some hot chocolate. You might like it."

"I love hot chocolate." Seth replied, smiling gently. "Come on. I'm sure Esme did a great job." He took her inside.

Jacob grinned as Seth came in with Corrinne. "Hey. You guys, this is Corrinne Uley, Seth's intended." They were greeted by a roomful of people. He watched her bury her face in Seth's chest shyly. "Aww, it's alright, Corrie. They're good people."

"Yeah." Seth set her down, and began to introduce her to the Cullens. "Oh, but do me and Jacob a favor, and don't tell Sam we brought you over here. Long story short, they don't get along."

"That's the second long story short I've heard today." Corrinne frowned deeply. "Embry said you guys didn't get along with Sam..."

"Oh?" Jacob scowled. He didn't think it was Embry's place to be discussing their business. "What else did he tell you?"

"Nothing...." Corrinne pulled closer to Seth. She couldn't make sense of the tension that was erupting. She was about to ask, when one of the other males in the room spoke up.

"Guys, calm down. You're making her nervous." The curly haired boy smiled gently at her, and she felt a little more relaxed.

"Embry's ... mostly right, but it's not anything you need to be worried about." Jacob said now. He felt bad that Embry had even opened his mouth. It wasn't going to make her want to trust either side any easier. They'd be lucky if she just trusted Seth after that.

"That's Jasper over there, and that girl beside him is Alice." Seth told Corrie then, to change the subject. "And this is Edward, Bella's husband."

Corrinne forgot almost immediately why she'd been so nervous. She smiled at the group. "Hi ... it's nice to meet all of you." She got brave, and got out of Seth's arms, settling for gripping his hand tightly instead, as the group studied her. It took her a moment to realize what she was seeing. _Vampires! Real vampires!_

"Don't worry, we're "vegetarians". We only feed on animals. You're safe." The one named Carlisle said to her. He was smiling fondly at her. "I think I remember you, actually. From a long while back. You probably wouldn't remember."

Corrinne merely nodded, not knowing what to say. She was still hanging close to Seth. Vegetarians or not, vampires were vampires. She found them just a bit harder to digest than the fact that her best friend, and a whole bunch of his friends, could turn into wolves at sheer will.

Seth let go of her hand then, as a younger child came into the room. "Hey Nessie." She watched the girl run over to Jacob, and hug him tightly. "Corrie, this is Renesmee Cullen. She's Edward and Bella's daughter, and Jacob's imprint."

"She's beautiful." Corrie was intrigued by the idea of vampires having children. She waved to Nessie, who smiled back prettily. "I'm Corrinne. Seth's my best friend."

"He imprinted on you, kinda like Jacob imprinted on me." Renesmee surprised her with her clear speech.

"Yeah, I guess he did." Corrinne hugged Seth close then. "We should probably go back soon. I don't want Sam to be madder than he might be already."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Seth sighed. "We're going to have to go by ourselves though, because Jacob's spending time with Nessie." He grinned. "Hey, this is great. You'll get to ride on my back.

Corrinne blinked, and watched as Seth seemed to explode as he hit the ground outside in a split second. In the place of the boy, there stood the sandy-colored wolf. She looked over at Jacob, who nodded.

"It's okay. he's in control." Jacob nodded, holding Renesmee in his arms. "If Sam throws a fit, tell him to talk to me." He watched Seth lower himself so the girl could get on his back once she was outside. And then he sighed. Sam wasn't playing nice, and that wouldn't go over well once Seth realized it.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten: Abduction**

"Corrinne, go inside, and get your homework started, please." Sam spoke evenly, giving Seth's wolf form an equally even look. He was not happy at all. When the girl was inside, and the door was closed, Sam folded his arms. "Let me guess. It was Jacob's idea to take her to see the leeches."

Seth phased back to his human form, since they were behind Sam's house. He pulled his clothes back on. "Yeah. I wanted to visit with Bella. I hadn't seen her in a while...." He guessed that Jacob really hadn't talked to him. "He told me you knew about it."

"Well, I didn't, until Jared came and told me. Seth, I won't have you guys taking her off of the reservation without my permission! And to that end, Jared will be taking care of her after school from now on. I should've realized what would happen if I left her in the hands of Jacob's group. You excluded, of course."

"Just because she's living with you, doesn't mean you can tell her what to do!" Seth replied hotly. "You're only watching her because we couldn't afford it."

"WE'RE DOING YOU A FAVOR, SETH CLEARWATER!" Now Sam was furious. "Corrinne is in my legal custody, and I have to do what is best for her. She is to stay with Jared until I get off work unless we make plans ahead of time! Is that understood?"

Seth frowned, feeling as though Sam was deliberately building a barrier between him and his imprinted one. "Sam, you can't do this." His voice was quiet now. "I know you have to do what is best, but that's my job too." He looked at his former pack leader. "You're afraid that Corrinne will like Jacob, Leah and I better. You're her father, not her pack leader."

"This has nothing to do with pack loyalties. I have to know where she is at all times. And I have to know before you do it. I realize that you're friends with the Cullens, and by rights, she has to be introduced to them, but I don't think it's a good idea either way. She might say the wrong thing to someone in school. Did you think of that?"

"I ... I didn't." Seth looked down now. "Can I say goodbye to her, please?"

"Yeah." Sam sighed deeply, feeling as though he had come on too strong for him. "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell...."

Seth shrugged, not accepting his apology. He went inside the house, and went to talk to Corrie.

***

Corrinne was in her room, her hair having been brushed out by Emily. She was reading silently in her bed, trying to pretend she hadn't heard Sam's tirade. She looked up as Seth walked in. "I heard everything...."

"Did you?" Seth sighed, and closed her door quietly, leaning against it. "It will work itself out. Everyone is eager to do whatever they can for you, and some of us have better ideas than others what is best." He muttered this last part. "Don't worry, Corrinne. This is all going to work out in our favor."

"Is it?" Corrie's eyes were full of tears. "The last thing I need is to have the kids talking about how you and Sam are at war over me, Seth." She looked away from him. "I'm having a hard time already, I don't need things to be worse."

"I know honey." Seth came over, and wrapped his arms around her tightly. "I'm going to ask Sam if you can spend the weekend at the house. How does that sound?"

"It sounds good...." Corrinne was beginning to feel rather like she was in the middle of a custody battle. She buried her face in Seth's chest then, taking in the left over wolf smell. She found it oddly comforting. "Sam didn't mean to yell at you. I bet he was jsut worried, that's all."

"Yeah, I bet that was it too." Seth humored. He had to talk to Jacob. He was starting to get the idea that Sam was going to attempt to make Corrinne choose a loyalty, and if he had his way, it would be his pack, even if Seth did somehow manage to get her away from Sam for an extended period of time. He got up, and settled her in her bed. "I'll see you later, Corrie, okay? And remember, stay here tonight. No wandering off.

"Yes, Seth...." Corrinne didn't want to cause Seth anymore trouble with Sam. She laid down, and closed her eyes. Sam would probably come in, and say goodnight to her, and probably lecture her too, for going along with it all. Just as she was drifting off to sleep, Sam did knock on the door, and enter.

"Corrie." Sam sat in a chair next to the bed. "Corrinne, honey, I'm sorry if you heard all of that. Seth needed to know his place."

"His place is with me." Corrinne replied, without sitting up.

"Well, yes, that's probably how you feel about it...." Sam ran a hand through his hair. "Corrinne, you've never had a proper upbringing, so I'm sure you won't understand, but, when Jared told me that Jacob took you, so many things went through my mind. I'm not saying Jacob is a bad guy. He's not. It's just that Jacob and his pack... they associate with leeches...vampires. They're our natural enemy, you see."

"The Cullens were nice to me." Corrinne sat up now. "They gave me juice, and everything." She eyed Sam, challenging him to find an underlying motive for such hospitality. "And I was with Seth. Nothing was going to happen."

Sam sighed. _So it's already beginning. Jacob's pack is going to interfere with me trying to bring Corrinne up safely. _"I don't want you to go off with them anymore unless you know we had it planned. If Jared says no, it means no." His voice was firm. He sounded exactly like his father, and it kind of bugged him. "I mean it, Corrinne. I don't want to have to make it impossible for you to see Seth." He got up, and went to her door. "Good night." He turned off her light, and closed the door behind him as he left.

Corrinne eyed the window, which was open, letting the slight salty breeze float to her nose. She laid back down then, and closed her eyes. She had promised Seth she wouldn't wander off, and she meant to keep it. _I hope Sam's threats are empty. I have a great respect for Sam and his wolf form, but if he tries to keep me away from Seth, I'll just run away. Seth's my best friend, and he can't take him away from me._

***

The next afternoon was bleak. It was raining again. Corrinne scowled under the umbrella Jared held over her. She wasn't going to see Seth that day. Sam had told her that morning Seth would be busy on patrol his pack. She wasn't sure if she entirely believed him, but she wouldn't go against him. She was still worried about his threats from the night before. Jared, for his part, had been mostly quiet since he'd picked her up that afternoon. He knew she was still upset about whatever it was that had happened with Seth finally got her home. he had been worried about it all afternoon after he'd told Sam of her whereabouts.

At length, Jared stopped them outside of his house, under an awning. He crouched to her level. "Come on, Corrie. Talk to me. You're not mad at me, are you?" It had occurred to him that was exactly it. "I had to answer for your absence. Sam was worried."

"Sam threatened to keep Seth away from me if Seth tried to walk off with me again." Corrie said then, as she pushed the hood of her new raincoat off of her head. She shook her damp hair out. "But it wasn't Seth, Jared, it was Jacob."

"Wow." Jared hadn't imagined Sam would go that far. Corrinne was someone's intended. Sam didn't have the right to tell Seth he couldn't see her, or threaten to keep him away from her. That would be painful on both of their parts. He cleared his throat. "Well, I'll have a talk with him later, okay? He can't really do that." He led her into his house.

"Hey,Jared." Quil was sitting on his couch. "Your Mom said you'd gone to get Corrie, and said I could wait."

"Oh yeah sure." Jared was helping Corrinne out of her rain jacket. "We have graham crackers and milk today." He told her grandly.

"Yummy." Corrie forced a smile. After all, it wasn't really Jared she was upset with. She went and sat at the table. Claire was sitting there, scribbling on some paper. "Hey, Claire."

"Hi hi, Cowwie!" The little girl smiled cutely. "Wanna colwor wif me?" She held out a blank tablet.

"Uh, sure!" Corrie smiled at the four-year-old. "What do you want me to make?"

"Make Sef!" Claire's eyes lit up. "Him loves you, wight?"

"Y-yeah...." Corrinne was amazed at what Claire knew about her and Seth. She wondered if she applied the same logic to herself and Quil. She didn't dare ask her though. She decided to draw Seth and Leah together. She was so into her work that she jumped a mile when she heard a most welcome voice close to her ear.

"Hiya, Corrie." Seth stood next to the chair where she had been working so contently.

"Seth!" She elatedly jumped into the boy's arms, clinging tightly. She looked over his shoulder at Jared. Jacob and Embry were with him, and they were all grinning. "What are you doing here? Sam said you couldn't today...."

"Yeah, well..." Seth shrugged, and held her tightly as well. He could feel relief coursing through the little girl. "The problem is, Sam tends to forget that _I _ have an alpha male that doesn't answer to him." He knew all about Sam's threats. Jared had casually told him all about it when he'd first gotten there, and had been watching Corrinne.

"Are you going to get into trouble again?" Corrie pulled away from him, her eyes extremely worried now. "He'll take you away from me...."

"Yeah, he can't really do that, you know. Imprinting and all." Seth replied, his voice just barely becoming more of a growl. "I came to see if you wanted to go on a run with me."

Corrinne hesitated. Sam's words echoed in her head. She wasn't allowed to go off with Seth anymore without his consent. She looked at Jared, who shook his head at her. "I can't...." She got down out of Seth's arms, her eyes glistening with tears. "Sam said I'm not allowed to go anywhere with you unless he knows about it ahead of time."

Seth refrained from growling, and he looked at Jacob, pleading with him to step in. His pack leader seemed a bit torn. He could see his wheels turning almost. He wanted to defy Sam just as much as Seth did. He could feel it. "Jake?"

"It's not a good idea." Jacob said now. "It's not worth getting into trouble over, Seth. We'll get permission from Sam for tomorrow, okay?" Jacob felt bad. He knew he could've had the authority to make Seth take her without Jared's consent, but he didn't want to put his friend into that kind of position with Sam.

"I don't have a problem if you guys want to visit here though." Jared told them both. He had been afraid for a minute that Jacob had been about to assert his pack authority over Seth to get Corrinne out of there. The fact that both Quil and Embry were there made him increasingly defensive. They were only mising Leah. He didn't want to have to play pack defender. In essence, Corrinne belonged to Sam's pack, and not Jacob's. It didn't really matter that Seth had imprinted upon her.

"Supervised visitation..." Seth was disgusted, but he said nothing else. He smiled at Corrinne. "We can play for a little while, okay?"

"Okay!" Corrinne relaxed, glad that the tension had dissolved. She looked at Claire. "I'll finish my picture later, okay, Claire?"

" 'kay!" Claire grinned at Seth. "Takes care of hers, Sef."

"Yep, you bet." Seth smiled at Quil's charge. "Always will." He took Corrinne by the hand, and they went to a vacant room in the back of the house.

***

Jacob heard the door to the back room close, and he glanced at Quil, who nodded. He got up, and wandered over to Claire casually. "Come on, Claire-bear. Let's go take a little nap."

"'kay, Quil." Claire waved to Jared, Embry and Jacob. "Night!"

"Goodnight." Jacob needed Claire to be out of the room, in case this got bad. It had been a bit of a ding in the plans when Claire's mother had asked Quil to babysit out of the blue.

"What's going on?" Jared wasn't stupid. They had wanted Claire out of the room for a reason. "You guys aren't actually going to try and pull a fast one, are you? All I'd have to do is send up an alert, and you guys would be out-" He gasped as Embry grabbed him roughly from behind. "You guys really want to do this, huh?" He yanked away, and phased, growling ferociously, not caring whether or not Claire or Corrinne heard. He had to protect Sam's daughter. He was more shocked when Jacob followed suit.

_"I didn't want it to come to this, Jared, but you're forcing my hand." _The Jacob-wolf turned to Embry, and gestured with his head towards the bedroom. He needed to go and assist Seth.

_"You morons! You don't actually think we're not going to come looking for her!" _Jared growled angrily, and moved towards the hall way, but he was butted out of the way by Jacob. _"Don't do this, Jake! Don't go there. It will only cause more pain for both Seth and Corrinne." _

The Jacob-wolf merely snorted. He had to keep Jared away from the back of the house, just long enough for Embry and Seth to ge Corrinne out of there.

***

"He's really got you under lock and key, huh?" Seth spoke between his teeth, as he leaned against the door. He hated to have to talk to her in secret like this, but he had to keep Jared out of the equation. Anything he and the rest of the pack were going to do had to be unexpected. "What's he so afraid of anyway? I thought he said this wasn't about pack loyalty."

"Seth... I don't want you to get in any trouble because of me...." Corrinne was watching Seth, her eyes round in anticipation. Something felt off. She didn't like the look Seth had about him right now. "Please Seth, no more trouble."

"There isn't going to be anymore trouble, Corrie." He came and knelt to her level, and held her tightly. "I don't like what Sam's done, and I'm not going to stand for him making you so afraid to be around me. You're my everything, Corrinne. My...special friend, and it really hurts, being away from you at all, even if it is what's best. Sam's forgotten that fact. Let's play a game, okay? Let's go and find a secret place, just for me, you, Leah and Jake." He guessed Embry and Quil would follow when they could.

Before Corrinne had a chance to reply, she heard something that frightened her. A ferocious growling. She gasped, and as the door opened, and Embry walked in.

"Jake's holding him off, so we better get going now." Embry looked to Corrinne then. "Don't worry, you're going to be perfectly safe with us."

She felt Seth pick her up, and climb out the bedroom window with her."Seth, stop! This isn't good!" She didn't want to go with them, even as much as she loved Seth. She felt the wind whip around her hair, as Seth ran at full speed. She half-expected him to phase into his wolf form, but he didn't. When she dared to glance back, Jared's house was a mere blur.

"I'll take you back to Sam when he can stop being stupid." Seth told her, holding her close to him. He felt bad. He could see how terribly frightened she was. He wrapped his arms around her, as she buried her face in his chest. She wasn't struggling with him, or fighting, which made him think that maybe she had been dying to get away as well. At length, about fifteen minutes away from the Reservation, he came to a stop. Leah and Jacob were there. Jake had taken an alternate route, and he was limping. "He got you?" He frowned. He hadn't thought Jared would do anything remotely bad while Claire was in the house. Then again, Jacob had phased, which was just as bad.

Wolf-Quil appeared a few minutes later, shaking rain from his fur before he phased, and put his clothes back on. "Just as I was putting her to sleep, Emily showed up to get Claire, and Corrinne. Luckily, I was in the bathroom, and didn't have to answer for anything. I came straight here from the bathroom though. They'll be looking for all of us, I'm sure."

"Wow. We really were cutting it close." Seth was still feeling accomplished that Jacob had been able to pull of their plan nearly flawlessly.

"Just barely." Jacob winced. "Seth, I hope your plan works, because if it doesn't, we're not doing this again. You realize with Sam and Emily having full guardianship...."

"Yeah, Yeah, I know. Kidnapping." Seth didn't want to think about that. He sank down in the grass with his Corrinne, and hugged her close to him more. He stroked her rain-soaked hair, and sang softly. She was sobbing softly, though not in fear. He hoped it was more of relief. He glanced around at the others. "Thanks guys."

"Don't mention it. Ever." Embry replied, sinking down beside his pack mate and Corrinne. "She needs to sleep. I'm sure she's had a long day."

"Who's going to sleep in this rain that's not a wolf, exactly?" Quil asked. But he hadn't come unprepared to take care of a normal human child. He and Claire had spent hours in the rain on the beach, and it was all thanks to his own tent for camping. He got Embry to help him prop it up.

"Corrie..." Leah came over then, and hugged her from behind. "We've missed you SO much, Corrie." If Seth hadn't insisted on taking her, Leah realized, she would have attempted it without Jacob's orders. Leah held Corrinne close, and stroked her damp hair slightly. She turned to Jacob, who was tending to his hurt arm. "You do realize he'll probably send his entire pack out to look for her...."

"That's why we're taking her where they won't dare come." Seth replied firmly. He looked at Corrinne. Embry and Quil were tending to her now, getting her snuggled up and warm in Quil's tent. He heard her giggle a bit, and it made him smile. He wondered briefly if what he was doing was really right. He could almost see Sam's point, but he had taken it too far, threatening to Corrie about things that the girl did not need to be fearing about. You didn't tell a child they couldn't see their best friend. _Don't worry, Corrie. This is just to teach Sam a little lesson. And when he comes to his senses, and stops being so posessive, things will go back to normal. _


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven: The Search Begins**

"What do you mean, they took off with her?!" Sam was really worried now. He had been alerted by Paul while he was still at work there was trouble brewing at Jared's house. He had not expected it to be Seth and Jacob, however. He had also not expected that Jacob would allow Seth to pull a stunt like this.

"Exactly what I said, Sam. This had to have been premeditated. Because Jacob told Seth right in front of me that they couldn't take her out of the house, and the next thing I know, Jacob and I get into this huge fight, and Corrie's gone. I'm just glad Claire didn't see any of this." Jared hung his head, feeling like he had failed his pack leader. "I'm so sorry, Sam. I should have tried harder."

"Wouldn't have done any good." Sam was furious. He wasn't sure if he was more furious with Seth or Jacob, but at the moment, he had to put his anger aside, and try to figure out how best to fix this situation to be in his favor.

"It might be against my better judgment to say so, Sam, but this is technically your fault. You tried to keep an imprint away from her intended. She was never in any danger with Seth, you know. Ordinarily, I probably would agree that she stay within our protection as your pack, but her circumstances don't allow for that. They have to be equal." Jared was almost proud of himself.

"Thank you, for that assesment." Sam's voice lacked the icy tone it would have normally held when he was disapproving of one of his own's statements. He was pacing. "I don't know where they would have taken her. None of them are officially old enough to be on their own except Leah, and I'd really like to think Leah would know better than to pull something of this nature."

"If Jacob gave the order, she's got no more control of obeying him than we have of obeying you." Paul reminded him. "She's in his pack." Embry felt really bad about all of this.

"Don't remind me." Sam nearly hissed, his voice cold now. "I'll have to think for a while. Alert the others, and we'll meet in the clearing in fifteen minutes." He took off at a run. He intended to find the child before Emily was even told about this. He was sure even she would blame him, and Sam wouldn't have been able to do anything but agree. He was starting to think it probably was his doing. Maybe had taken all of this too far. When he had Corrinne back, he would have a long talk with both Jacob and Seth. Then he would do whatever it took to make it up to Corrinne, because in all reality, this was probably effecting her more than either of those other two.

***

Edward blinked, watching Seth and Leah eat pasta with Corrinne, before he turned back to Jacob. "You guys are putting us in a really bad position, you know."

"Yeah, I know...." Jacob shifted Renesmee to his other hip. "You don't really understand, Edward. Sam was on the verge of completely forbidding Seth from seeing her." It pained Jacob, just thinking of never being allowed to see Nessie again. "I couldn't allow Sam to get away with hurting one of my own like that."

"I understand that. Why bring them here though?" He watched Seth help Corrinne clean up some spaghetti sauce. "Other than the obvious reason of Sam and his pack won't come near this place."

"It was Seth's idea. I think he's getting back at Sam for being unreasonable yesterday." Jacob shook his head. "I feel bad about all of this, honestly. She must be so confused."

"Oh, she is." Edward nodded. "But she'll do anything to make Seth happy. That's the sad part about imprinting, I think. It's a two-way street, whether romantic or not." He walked over to where Seth was sitting with his sister and Corrinne. "Hey guys...." He offered a kind smile to Corrinne.

"Hey, Edward. Sorry to impose on you guys like this." Seth replied. He watched as Leah finished braiding Corrinne's hair. "That looks really nice, Leah."

"Thanks." Leah took Corrinne by the hand, and led her out of the dining room so that Edward could talk to Seth in private. She was sure he probably had a lot to say.

Edward watched Leah disappeared with the little girl, and then he sat down in her now vacant chair. "Seth, do you really think pulling this is going to make Sam want to give you your way any more enthusiastically?"

"Not the point." Seth replied, running a hand through his hair. "Edward, he told_ her _ that he was going to make it so that I couldn't see her anymore. He told _her_ that, not me. She afraid, Edward."

"And she's even more afraid now. If it weren't for Jasper helping out, I'm pretty sure she'd be even more upse than she's acting now. I know you love her, and I probably can't change your mind about this, but at least think about it. She doesn't deserve this kind of confusion." Edward truly felt bad for Corrinne. He did understand where Seth was coming from. He was afraid of losing his imprint all together. However, Corrinne needed to come before his own emotions, and Seth wasn't thinking logically. He heard the girl giggling in the living room, and then Emmett's boisterous chuckling, and he half-smiled. Sometimes he wondered if Emmett wished he could have kids. He tended to be very good with them.

"Yeah, okay." Seth wasn't even going to think about what Edward was saying. He knew what Corrinne needed, and it wasn't Sam telling her who she could, and couldn't see. He wasn't going to allow it. He got up. "Don't worry Edward. If he does ask, I will tell Sam you guys had nothing to do with this." He took his and Corrinne's plates into the kitchen for Esme.

Edward sighed. He had tried. That's all he could do. He just hope all of this was resolved with as little traumatic damage to Corrinne as possible.

***

Sam sat on his wolf haunches, looking over his pack, feeling almost resentful they were there, and his adopted daughter was not. He began his train of thought then. _"I'm sure you've all found out by now. Jacob Black and his pack have abducted my adopted daughter, and hidden her away somewhere." _

_"Well, she can't be in too much danger, Sam. Seth is in Jacob's pack, isn't he? And he imprinted on Corrie." _Brady said now, his thoughts uncertain. He had been really upset when he found out that Jared had been attacked as a diversion.

_"Be that as it may, what Seth has done cannot go unresolved. That child legally belongs with me. While he's not old enough to be even be tried by the council, something must be done to teach him that this kind of behavior cannot be tolerated." _Sam nudged Corrinne's raincoat into the circle. _"We'll start the search now. This has a good amount of her scent on it." _

_"Sam, what if they took her to the Cullens'? We can't cross into their land without a very good reason." _It was Paul that spoke up now. He had been at Jacob's house when the alert about Corrinne had gone out. He had been very uptight about it, because his imprint was related to Jacob.

_"I think getting Corrinne back here to the Reservation is reason enough." _Sam replied, not giving an inch. _"Let's go." _At that, the pack circle split up, and with every wolf's nose to the the ground, the search for Corrinne began.

***

Corrinne watched as the sun began to sink lower behind the trees. She was ready to go back to Sam's. She was terribly afraid of what Sam would do under the circumstances. Seth was trying to keep her calm, and she loved him for it, but a part of her felt like he was responsible for her distress. She looked up at he came over to her now. "We should go back now. I don't like this game anymore."

Seth scooped her up. "We'll go back soon, okay? Sam just needs time to realize his mistake." He carried his charge back to the Cullens' living room, and sat her in his lap, hugging her close. "Don't worry, you're not going to be in any trouble."

"She might not, but I'm really not looking forward to dealing with the council, Seth." Leah said now. She glanced out the window. Quil and Embry were patrolling the front yard, keeping alert for any sign of the other pack. "And I really don't want to deal with Sam."

"Then don't." Seth replied, stroking Corrie's hair lightly. He was hoping that if Sam did turn up, Corrinne would be asleep. He glanced at Jacob, who was pacing the window uneasily. Seth began to wonder if what they had done was worth all of this stress. Corrinne had to be feeling thier own worries. When he looked down, Corrinne was half asleep, clinging to his shirt tightly.

"Why don't you let me go put her down to sleep in my room, Seth?" Bella asked. "She needs the rest, I gather." Bella hadn't said anything one way or the other about how she felt about the abduction. She sympathized with Seth, but she didn't feel like it was her place to tell him how to deal with Sam's transgressions.

"Okay." Seth was only slightly reluctant to let Bella take Corrinne from his side. He got up then, and wandered over to Jacob. "Anything?"

"They're still pacing out there." Jacob turned and faced his youngest pack member then. "Seth, do you think we're doing the right thing by Corrinne? Whether she was upset with Sam over what he said or not, do you really think she's enjoying this adventure still?" He knew it was his responsibility to try and defuse Seth before Sam found them. Seth wouldn't think clearly if he didn't.

"I ... I don't know anymore." Seth sighed deeply. The truth of the matter was, Seth was ready to just have a talk with Sam. He was beginning to think that's what he should have done in the first place. He was about to ask Jacob how he thought that would go over when there came a howling from a mile away.

"That's Embry." Jacob pulled his shirt off. "Stay here." He turned to Leah then. "Come on. I think we've been found."

Leah nodded silently, and she was out the door before anyone could utter another word. She wanted a strong word with Sam herself about what she'd heard was said to the child.

Jacob looked at Seth. "Go and stay with Corrinne for now, okay? I'm not sure how things are going to be right now, but she doesn't need to be anymore spooked than she already is." Jacob watched the boy go upstairs, and then he went outside, phasing as soon as he hit the ground.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve: Reunited for a Real Beginning  
**

Sam stood a couple of inches from Jacob, Leah, Quil and Embry. He narrowed his eyes,noting that Seth and Corrinne were not with them. He crossed his arms as he addressed Jacob. "Where is she? You know she legally belongs to me."

"You're her guardian, but you don't own her. Don't treat her like an object." Leah replied. She took a step forward. "We came here to try and talk to you about all of this. Seth is still pretty mad at you, and he's hellbent on keeping her away from you . Jacob and I want to try and rectify things so that they can work in favor of both of you."

"You have a lot of guts, making demands! What you did was kidnapping, and if I really wanted to, I could put you both up there against the council. Just you have Seth bring her out here, now."

"Sam, won't you at least hear us out first?" Jacob asked now. He took a tentative step forward. "Seth was only thinking of Corrinne. You scared her, when you threatened to keep her best friend away from her." He began. "Maybe he was thinking a little of himself, and I know he's regretting this, but before you see her, you need to understand where Seth is coming from."

"I do understand." Sam replied. His voice was calm. He looked at Jacob. "I know did wrong, telling her that. I was just frustrated. I'm new to parenting, you guys. It's really hard to be a father, when you've never had one in the first place." He hung his head a bit. "But, on that same note, I feel for her as if she really is my own child. "

"Seth wanted to teach you a lesson about keeping something precious from him."

"He's lucky if I don't teach him a lesson myself." Sam muttered. "Okay, look. If I promise to talk to both Corrinne, and Seth, will you please bring her out here? I just want to see her so I can apologize in person." He eyed Jacob. He could see Jacob wanted to bring this feud to an end as much as he did. He just wanted to get back to his original intention of trying to bring Corrinne up as properly as he could under the odd circumstances.

"Fine. But we're not leaving her with you unless she asks us to." Leah told him. She turned to Embry and Quil, who had stayed a safe distance behind, keeping an eye out for the others in Sam's pack. That was another reason why she wouldn't leave the girl with him unless she wanted her to go. "Go and tell Seth to come with Corrinne."

Embry nodded once, and he left, phasing back to his human form just as he reached the Cullens' property line. He was hoping for a quick resolve of matters, though he was certain that wasn't going to be the case. He wasn't sure how Corrinne was feeling about Sam, but he knew perfectly well how Seth was feeling. He would be the one to cause this fall through.

***

Corrinne wasn't sure what she was feeling when Seth brought her out of the Cullens' mansion to meet her adopted father and his pack. She clung tightly to Seth, intimidated by the enormous amount of wolves. She was okay when it was one or two, but there appeared to be at least twenty gathered. "There's so many...."

"Sam never was one to travel lightly...." Seth whispered in her ear, laying her head on his shoulder as he came to a stop a few feet away. "Sam, you can come meet her, but your pack stays put. They scare her."

"Fine." Sam waved his wolf brothers back, and he walked up to them. "Corrinne, honey, are you okay?"

"No." She whimpered, burying her face in Seth's neck. "Don't take Seth away from me....." She was reminded of her dream the first night there, and she shuddered. It made sense now. She thought maybe Old Quil had been wrong. The black wolf was trying to overtake Seth.

"Corrie, no one is going to take me away from you." Seth told her softly, and gave Sam an even look. "Right, Sam?"

"That's right...." Sam tentative laid a hand on the girl's head. He could feel her shivering. The rain was cold, and she was without her rain coat. He looked at Seth. "Can I please hold her?"

Seth hesitated, afraid that if he let go of the girl, Sam would merely take off with her, but he decided to give Sam the benefit of trust, knowing he knew he was already on thin ice. He held Corrinne out to him carefully. "Please, don't...."

Sam took his adopted daughter into his arms, and held her close to him, keeping her warm, and trying to make her feel safe. It was obvious the girl was very confused, as she wouldn't settle in his arms, and she kept looking towards Seth, afraid he'd leave for good. "Hey, it's okay, Corrie. I'm never going to be that careless again. I was wrong, you know, telling you I'd keep Seth away. That's not how it works, when one is imprinted upon." He held her close, and he sighed inwardly in relief when the girl finally wrapped her arms around his neck more securely. "Things are going to be different now, Corrinne, I promise. You can see Seth whenever you want, as long as I know when plans have changed."

"And this could have all been avoided if you had just been thinking like that before, Sam." Jacob said now. "You know I would never let any harm come to your child or anyone under my pack's protection." He smiled gently.

Corrinne remained quiet, taking in the scent of Sam's hair. He had phased recently. She snuggled deeper into the arms of the one who took care of her like a father should. "You smell like wet dog."

"Yeah well..." Sam chuckled a little at the assessment. "I need to have a word with Seth in private." He looked at the younger boy then. "I'm just going to have Jared and Paul take her over there to play for a bit."

"Fine, but we'll be watching too." Quil said now. He thought if he and Embry also went with Paul and Jared, Seth would feel a little more at ease. Embry nodded.

"That's fine." He glanced over as Jared and Paul approached in their human forms now.

"Go with Jared and Paul, it's okay." Seth told Corrinne when the girl hesitated. "I'll see you soon." He watched the two older boys and Embry and Quil walk away with the girl. He turned back to Sam.

***

"Well, go ahead. Tell me off."

Sam's expression was hard. "You're lucky if I don't report you to the council for this, Seth. I don't deny I probably brought all of this on myself, but that's besides the point. Look how confused and scared that little girl is now. That is not all my doing."

"Well, it wouldn't have been that way if you hadn't tried to be super overprotective. I love that little girl, Sam. She's my intended, and you had no right to try and keep her away from my home pack. It's fine that she gets to know your boys too, because they'll be a part of her life, but you can't deny us access to her. That's not fair!"

"I know that now. How many times do I have to apologize?" Sam asked now. "I really wouldn't wish any discontent on her. She's already had it so rough." Sam frowned then. "We've only had her on the reservation a couple of days, and she's already been so scared. We need to all be a little more careful."

"Yeah...." Seth felt ashamed of his actions now. "Just promise you won't do it again."

"Yeah, I promise." Sam held out his hand. "We need to be working together for her well-being."

"Right." Seth shook hands with Sam, and then they both hugged. "So, I need to go home now, and talk to Mom with Leah. Can you tell Corrinne I said goodbye?"

"Why don't you go on and do it. I don't want her to think I sent you away." Sam felt as though Corrinne wasn't going to trust him with such matters anymore.

"Right. Thanks, Sam." Seth went over to the group of boys who were playing with his Corrinne.

Leah looked up at Sam. "For what it's worth, I think Corrinne really adores you, Sam." Leah knew this, because she had bragged earlier in the evening about Sam's way of knowing things.

"I guess...." Sam rubbed his hand over his face. He was tired, and he just wanted to get home and get Corrinne back to a normal routine. The thing that bothered him the most about all of this was that Corrinne had not yet had a chance to experience a normal home life. _Not that being raised by a shape shifter is ever going to totally be normal. _He watched Seth with his imprint, and smiled. He was going to be really good for Corrinne, he was sure of it, especially now that they had an understanding.

***

That night at home, Sam watched Corrinne carefully, hoping that he was worried about nothing. Corrinne had not said much to him since they'd returned to the house, and she only spoke when directly spoken to. Sam decided after dinner that he'd give her first lesson in the Quileute language. He called her over, and sat next to her on the couch. "So, it's been a rough couple of days, huh?" He rubbed her back a little, to ease her fear.

"Yeah...." Corrinne had brought out the book that Old Quil had given her the first night she was with Sam. "I don't know how to read this... the kids at school called me stupid."

"They did? Well, we're just going to have to prove them wrong." Sam smiled gently, and took the book from her. "This first word here? It means "native" or "Quileute", which is what we are." He went through a couple of words on the first page, and then tried to get her to read the same words on a random page he found. He figured they'd have to do this a few times a week, in order for her to become fluent.

"I like this." Corrinne told him, smiling gently. "I don't remember what he was like, Sam. My Daddy. I only remember being left to be looked after by neighbors. He never stayed home a lot."

"Oh?" Sam remembered that clearly as well. He, Jared and Paul had often played with her, especially when Leah wasn't available. "Well, I promise I'll be here for you as often as I can be." He hugged her close to him, and petted her hair. "You don't have to ever be afraid of being abandoned again, Corrinne, I promise."

"Alright, it's time for her bath." Emily broke in now. "I got you some lavender bubble bath today at the store."

"Yes!" Corrinne loved a good bubble bath. Leah had been good with that. She got up, and set the old book down carefully on the table in front of them. She went to her bedroom to get her new robe.

Emily smiled, and then looked down at Sam. "Do you think everything is going to be okay for her now?" Emily was really concerned about how Seth's little stunt might have effected the child.

"Yeah, I think so. We've all come to a better understanding of things now. I'd even be willing to let Seth take across the line to see those leeches if he wanted to at this point." Sam sighed. He was really afraid of losing Corrinne himself now, so he would be willing to do anything to make her want to stay more. He glanced up at Corrinne came back out to them.

"Sam... I ... I'm sorry I didn't...."

"It's okay. That was a position I wouldn't have put my worst enemy in. You wanted to fight with them, but you didn't. It's understandable." Sam was still angry that Seth had put the little girl into such a position. "Go with Emily and get your bath now, little one." Sam stood up as his two girls went into the bathroom. He sighed deeply, stretching. Well, things were going to be interesting, that was true enough. Corrinne was going to be raised by two packs, not just one, which could both be beneficial, and harmful at the same time. They would all have to be very careful. He was up for the challenge, and he was sure that the rest of his pack, and Jacob's, would be as well. He smiled to himself, hearing Corrinne giggle from the bathroom. _Well, Sam. Things are going to be just fine. You'll get to be everything your father wasn't, and it couldn't have happened at a better time, just when you and Emily were talking about having a family. _

**(A/N: And this concluded What the Heart Wants. I want to thank everyone who helped me out with this fic, and made it the success I feel it was!)**


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